Robert's Journey
by Droid-88B
Summary: The land above the Underground had become distorted and wrecked. During the year of 2077, nuclear bombs had detonated all across the world, rendering it a complete and utter mess of irradiation. Robert House seeks to restore order to the Mojave and beyond, but when he goes out to explore Mt Ebott, he's met with a new set of problems.
1. The Fall

**Robert Edwin House-Undertale**

The sounds of people slamming shots of all manner of alcoholic beverages onto tables, roulette tables being spun, cards being slapped and shouts of anger and delight occupied The Strip. The Strip, home to many forms of people; New California Republic soldiers hoping for fun, rich gamblers, people hoping to get their big shot at life, comedians, former vault occupants, the likes. Those people were the common folk, there were, however, people far more important and successful than they could ever hope to be. The Courier was a man of great, _great_ power, having slaughtered all those who opposed him and helping those in need with little effort. He had saved President Kimball of the NCR from being killed by the Legion, a ruthless faction based upon the Roman Empire methods, led by the man, if one could grace him with such a title, who called himself Caesar. In turn, the Courier had also saved Caesar from certain death via a brain tumour.

But during the Second Battle of Hoover Dam, the Courier had betrayed both Caesars Legion and the NCR in one foul swoop, by implanting Mr House into the Hoover Dam substation system, thus granting Mr House full control of the power of the water. With this power, Mr House was able to send it to a hidden Vault in a derelict weather station, full of thousands of PDQ-88B Securitrons, robots of mass power. The Courier went on with this army at hand and began to shape the Mojave to how it was before the war. Along his travels, the Courier was transported to the Big MT, an area occupying five of the smartest people known to mankind. The Big MT was home to lobotomites, people who've had their brains removed and sent out into the Big Empty. Robert House, the de facto ruler of the Mojave, was a man who'd taken his body and hooked it up to a machine that enabled him to oversee the land through his Securitrons and cameras laid about. With the technology that the Courier had garnished, Robert was able to transfer what remained of his brain into an enhanced lobotomite who was sculpted to reflect his pre-war self.

With this new body, that had been enhanced with several cybernetic replacements, (left eye, brain, arms and legs, heart and spine, etc), Robert House was able to task and complete objectives with the help of the Courier ahead of schedule.

There was one location that hadn't been explored yet, however, the mountain known as Mt Ebott.

Robert House breathed in irradiated air and exhaled, letting out a puff of purified air, perks of having replaced ones lungs with some that were cleaner and more efficient at keeping one alive. He was being escorted by two PDQ-88B MK 3 Securitrons. Indistinguishable from the model prior, aside from the new addition of some enhanced scanners and an upgraded on-board repair system, thus increasing their combat effectiveness from 235% to 325%. Throughout the entire journey, the land that they were travelling on was being recorded and transmitted back the Server Banks back at the Lucky 38, being stored for further documentation.

Arriving at the foot of the mountain, Robert began his trek to the top, passing destroyed trees and desolate, ruined camps as he went. He eventually found himself at the top of Mount Ebott, close by to a hole that seemed to stretch on forever. Walking forwards ever so carefully, Robert was sure that he wouldn't fall in. He, or more rather, his microchip, began to work out the correct calculations and such with little difficulty. Having deemed himself safe, Robert peered into hole that lay before him and dropped in a special device to measure the distance and send the reports back to him. The measurements indicated certain doom. Chuckling to himself, Robert input some information into his Pip-Boy 9000, a Pip-Boy similar to his protégé, the Courier, but outfitted with a radio, a personal workbench and a basic camera drone dispenser.

As Robert was turning to his two Securitrons, a sudden force barrelled into him, propelling him backwards. A blue glow coated the edges of this force, giving an ethereal guise to the seemingly magical presence that had sent him towards the hole. Wind whipped past Robert, disrupting his neatly combed hair and groomed moustache. Screaming the whole way down, Robert was sure he was about to meet his imminent death. His head came into contact with a soft patch of flowers, thus rendering his unconscious. The two Securitrons fell not long after.

Robert House awoke with a headache he had not felt since before the war and let out a grumble of displeasure. He opened his eyes and immediately regrated this decision, for a sudden onset wave of nausea began to pound into his head. After a minute or two of massaging his forehead, Robert opened his eyes and blinked through the bleariness. He saw his two Mk3 Securitrons scanning their immediate surroundings for enemies or some kind of interesting resource, but they only found some buttercups. Buttercups. Buttercups that looked, _normal_. Lifting his Pip-Boy 9000, Robert pressed a small button and scanned the golden flowers that had somehow cushioned his fall, against all reasonable odds. After waiting a second or two, the scan results came up with a 0% radiation mark.

" _Hmmm, pure buttercups? Odd_ ", was the only thought that went through Roberts head.

Slowly making his way up, leaning on his Securitrons for support, Robert took in his surroundings. At his feet lay a patch of golden buttercups. Twisting his head to the side, Robert was only meet with grey, stone walls. Seeing an opening on the far side of the natural room, Robert made towards it, with no clear intention in mind other than him escaping. Darkness ensnared Robert, and his hopes were dashed away, till he was meet with a peculiar sight.

In the centre of the dark room was a flower. A buttercup that had something akin to a face, of a sort.

"Howdy! I'm Flowey! Flowey the flower! _Annnd_ , your new best friend!" Several things were going through Flowey's head at this time. The height of this human. The two metal things that reminded him of Mettaton that were currently behind the human. Except for the fact that they were rolling on singular wheels, had a T shaped chassis, a TV displaying a soldier head for a face, two tube-like arms and an array of glowing buttons adorning its right hand and chest. (For reference, just search up PDQ-88B Securitron). His obvious age. But most importantly, was the soul that the human no doubt had.

"Hmmm, you look a little confused. This is the underground! Let me give you a little introduction as to how things work around here!" began Flowey, anxiously waiting for what was to come next.

Robert regarded the situation with a keen interest, one that only a scientist would hold. This mutant was like no other, having evolved to resemble a flower. Remaining silent, Robert watched and waited for the response from this, 'Flowey'. A sudden chill seemed to emanate from everywhere and no-where at once, and the flower-mutant winked.

"This, copper looking gear, is your soul! The very accumulation of your being! Right now, you have a weak soul, but you can make it stronger by collecting LV! What's LV you ask?" Flowey continued, regardless of the raised eyebrows from Robert, who was fascinated with moving and feeling his new-found soul, "Why, LOVE, of course! You want some LOVE, don't you? Just move your soul around and collect these friendliness pellets of mine!" Flowey concluded, before raising up several odd white-seed-pellet-things. Robert took a quick picture from his Pip-Boy 9000 for further documentation.

Robert let in a sudden breathe of air, realising that something was currently happening. The mutant had sent forth the pellets that it had somehow, _summoned_ , and had sent them towards him. With little difficulty, Robert was able to manoeuvre his soul to doge all of the pellets sent towards him.

"Heh, it seems that you, _accidently_ , failed! That's fine! Just, run into the friendliness pellets, won't you?" Flowey seemed to let out a sigh of frustration, clearly annoyed.

They came again. Robert dodged yet again. Flowey seemed to become even more irritated. But Robert wasn't scared, why should he be? He had robots of mass power and destruction that could easily neutralize this small threat. But that didn't mean Robert was going to let this abomination infect him with its filthy radiation.

"Cease aggressive behaviour", came the threatening, monotone response from both of the Securitrons, X-25 Glasington House Gatling Laser's raised.

Flowey's face morphed into a hungry, horrifying demon with black eyes and an incredibly long tongue. He simply chuckled in response and diverted his pellets towards the 2 PDQ-88B Securitrons, one clear intention in mind. To the displeasure of Flowey, these attacks were useless, as the Securitrons had no souls, just complex programming. This causing Flowey to stop. The Securitrons left 'hand' began to spin, signalling Flowey's imminent demise. Before Flowey could escape, or be reverted to a pile of ash, an odd figure walked in.

It had been a normal morning for Toriel, the usual, mundane routine that she had grown so accustomed to. She had passed some froggits along the way, scared some whimsuns, danced with some moldsmal, the likes. As she came to her final stop, she realised that something was different. Increasing her pace, she made for the entry-way, to the burial place of her adopted child. She entered and was left flabbergasted and speechless. There were two golems of a sort, both charging up a fire spell, a buttercup with a demonic face and a human. Snapping out of her stupor, Toriel was about to resolve the situation.

Robert saw his 2 Securitrons beginning to warm up their Gatling Lasers and ordered them to stop via a microchip embedded into the depths of his brain. They stopped immediately, forever loyal to the chains of code that bound them to the will of Mr House. During this time, another mutant walked in through the arch that was implemented in the stone. It had a calming nature about it, but still managed to project a daunting and imposing stance, similar to that of a parent. Flowey's face morphed back into the 'happy' one that Robert was associated with and faced the new arrival.

Toriel saw the horrid flower that had showed up un-announced on several occasions. It had appeared numerous times, usually to torment the creatures that in-habit the Ruins, but other times it had found enjoyment through scaring her with a vile, disgusting face that oozed an odd black substance. Raising her hand she was prepared to send forth a super-heated ball of fire. The fire ball was summoned and she flung it towards the creature with intense speed, forcing it to cower below the ground.

"What a miserable, abhorrent creature to torture such a youth, man, like you. Come along chil-, ahem, friend, let me show you the Ruins." Toriel had to pause several times while saying this, her usual mantra unusable for this situation. All the humans that had fallen down were children, much to Toriel's dismay. It pained her to know that such young people who hadn't experienced life had fallen prey to Asgore's trident.

Normally, most children that Toriel had encountered had shown bewilderment and kindness to her. Some apprehension, but most were happy with her. Robert, however, wasn't a child and was far more interested with the science of such matters. And so he responded accordingly.

"Mutant, identify yourself. I've never seen a strand of the Forced Evolutionary Virus affect a human so. Odd." Robert demanded, his British accent cold and calculating.

Toriel had felt as if a chill had entered the room. Only Sans had brought on this feeling, once. Frisk, the most recent human to fall into the depths of the Underground had an odd discussion with Sans. Toriel hadn't heard the full transaction, but their body language was all she needed to know that things were getting heated. She could've sworn that Sans' eye had lit up a bright, piercing blue that seemed to be lit on fire. Getting thrown back into the present from another verbal prod from newest human, Toriel was to answer his question.

The mutant, whose name Robert hadn't been able to find out about just yet, had her eyes glazed over in deep thought. After clearing his throat, she seemed to snap out of her stupor.

"What do you mean my child? I'm not ill, if that's what you were wondering. . ." began Toriel, "My name is Toriel and I am the care-taker of these Ruins. Come along now and I'll show you how things work around here." Toriel explained warmly.

Robert, still precautious after his encounter with Flowey, decided to follow along with this, Toriel, not scared in the slightest. He was more than capable of dealing with any heated combat situation, and his radiation resistance was up to par with the mutants above ground themselves. He simply nodded his head and followed after the goat-mutant that was going to give him the grand-tour. Robert heard his two Securitrons rolling after him, their weapons concealed from view.

Entering the room to the side, Robert was met with, what he assumed, a grand entryway. Lining the white path were red flower petals, from pre-war roses he guessed. Two sets of stairs fed into a stone area, chiselled down to perfection. But what really startled Robert was the hovering, glowing star that shimmered a few metres in front of him. It was mesmerising and rather hypnotic. Robert felt himself move forwards on impulse, drawn to its calming and friendly nature it oozed out. His hand came into contact and yet it didn't burn like he had thought, neither did it feel comforting. It was cold and life-less. Snapping his hand out, Robert felt a voice, from where he couldn't identify, speak softly to him. It told him of a 'save point' and 'DETERMINATION'. Robert decided that the best way to deal with this was to try to block out any thought of this event. However unsuccessful it may be. With his eyes dancing across the room, peering into any and all corners that lacked light, Robert marched forwards, with the intent of escaping the presence of the star and the DETERMINATION that it carried.


	2. The Ruins

Chapter 2

 **Authors Notes** : I apologise for the long delay, thanks for the reviews! Just so you have an idea as to what has happened so far relating to the setting and scene and such. Frisk has fallen down and has reset multiple times, completing several Genocide routes and Pacifist routes. During one of those journeys, something happened (I'm not quite sure as of now, Gaster could've done something?) as Frisk was fighting Asriel Dreemurr in his Final Form, and all the souls that he had taken were restored and Asriel was able to live, while the barrier remains closed. So now Asriel is in his young body and the barrier remains closed. Frisk is still there and the human's bodies and souls are nowhere to be seen. You know, I just might play Fallout New Vegas again, just to get a feel for Mr House. Again, sorry for the delay.

"My child, wait for me!" yelled Toriel, lifting the hem of her dress to run after Robert who suddenly walked away without any word.

Robert so far was not having any fun. First an unknown force had sent him to this uncharted, underground area, a talking flower mutant had tried to kill him, a goat-lady-mutant appeared and decided to take him under her care and now voices had appeared from a floating star. He was not having any of it. He entered yet another room adorned with flower petals and saw 6 buttons laying on the floor. Four of them had scuff marks on their centre, so that's what Robert stepped on. The large door that lay before him opened with a loud _slam_. Continuing onwards, Robert found a large hallway with yet again, floral decorations. Completing the obvious task of flipping the labelled switches, Robert broke out into a sprint when he heard the presence of the Goat mutant close behind. His kinetic-leg servos were able to quicken his already apt speed and thus create more distance between him and the mutant.

Passing a training dummy, Robert was met with more hallways. On his way to a room laid with spikes, he passed a very large and intimidating frog. It peered directly at him, unnerving him to no end. It hopped forwards one step, forcing Robert to act. Acting on the spot, Robert drew a gun from the innards of his 3 piece suit. Flicking one of the settings available to him along the side of the gun (search up Fiona's gun from 'Tales from the Borderlands'), Robert pulled the trigger and released a tranquilizer dart. It sailed through the air before landing upon the frog-mutant's forehead. Robert wasn't an idiot, he wasn't about to kill any living thing that lay in his path. If he wanted his dream of a pre-war America to become true, he may need all the help he can get. Even if his help would include mutants. Speed-walking away from the limp form of the frog, he came to an area bathed in water with a large platform raised in the centre, taking up most of the space. This platform was full of spikes. Sharp looking ones. Breathing out a sigh of frustration, Robert waited for the inevitable arrival of the goat-mutant and his Securitrons. Around 15 seconds or so later, Robert could hear the padding of feet and the familiar sound of his Securitron's tires rolling along the ground.

"My child, don't go running off like that again. What provoked you so?" was the question that Toriel asked.

"What do you know of Determination? And what of that floating star laying at the end of that hallway?" Robert replied curtly, indicating to the hallway that he had once been in with his finger.

"I-what? What are you saying my child? There is no floating star or any floating object for that matter. Have you hit your head?" Toriel queried, quite confused.

The odds that Robert had injured himself physically or mentally were unlikely, according to his diagnostics that were sent from his microchip to his Pip-Boy. Perhaps she was telling the truth, in some way, about there being no star. Maybe he could only see it, due to his retinal implants. Or it could've been that whatever powers at play that had sent him to this place had also played a part that had allowed him to see the, 'DETERMINATION Star'. Snapping out of his thoughts, Robert re-focused himself with Toriel.

"No, no, I'm fine thank you," Robert began, "Where are we, exactly?" Robert had just remembered his prime reason for coming to Mt Ebott, exploration. And running away from a source of information was counterintuitive in this case.

"Oh, of course. Welcome to the Underground, more specifically the Ruins. I can tell you all about it if you'd just follow me home." Toriel replied.

"Hmmmmm. Alright then, Toriel, I'll come with you and you'll tell me everything you know of the Underground. Securitrons, record and transmit the video footage back to the Lucky 38." Commanded Robert.

The Securitrons uttered a, 'yes sir', and began to extend an antenna from their heads.

"What are those golems of yours? Are they dangerous?" asked Toriel, quite apprehensive.

"Hehehe. Are they dangerous", chuckled Robert, "Of course they are dangerous. They're part of my army, capable of rendering entire civilizations to dust. They have X-25 Glasingtonhouse Gatling Lasers, 9mm submachineguns, G-28 grenade launchers and M-235 missile launchers. Of course they are dangerous. They can kill anyone at any time. If I give the say so, that is." Concluded Robert, a proud smile creeping onto his face.

A familiar feeling of dread and terror crept up Toriel's back. A cloudy thought of a slaughter resurfaced. A child, with their hands covered in dust and a murderous, red glint in their eyes. Her shivering and fear were soon dashed away as she heard Robert's footsteps beginning to fade.

"My child, do not leave me again, let me show you how this puzzle works." Offered Toriel.

"No, no, that's quite alright thank you. I can easily find my way across." Robert responded.

Walking along, Robert lifted his wrist and pressed a small button on the side of his Pip-Boy, releasing a small camera outfitted with an antenna and a miniature set of helicopter blades. Swiping his fingers across the screen with the grace of a conductor controlling his band, Robert was able to get a bird's eye view of the spike puzzle. Activating the X-Ray option, he was able to see which spikes were safe and which weren't. Robert began to walk forwards, against Toriel's gasp of fear, and followed the path indicated by a glowing arrow that appeared thanks to his retinal implant.

"My child, how'd you do that? And what was that flying creature?" Asked Toriel once Robert had made it across.

"It seems that technology hasn't advanced that far yet. It's one of my many camera drones, machines that record what I tell them to record, then transmit what they've gathered back to me." Robert replied, a smirk adorned across his face.

Toriel just mouthed an 'oh' and followed along.

"What is your name, child? And where are you from?" Came yet another question from Toriel.

"For one, my name isn't 'child', it's Robert Edwin House, but Mr House is fine. I'm from New Vegas, my pre-war paradise. I came to this damned mountain to explore and further expand my reach, but _something_ pushed me into this place." Robert responded.

"Pre-war? What are you referring to my chi-Mr House? The Monster-Human War was at least a thousand years ago, and our child Frisk hasn't told us of any war." Hesitantly came Toriel.

"You have no knowledge of the great war that took place above ground? While it was 210 years ago, I assumed you had knowledge of the war to end all wars." Robert replied in an astounded manner.

Toriel uttered a single 'no', thus forcing Robert to explain the past 210 years. He told her about his calculations of the war, how he built advanced laser cannons, what laser cannons were, the platinum chip, Las Vegas. He told her of the machine he built to keep his body alive and his mind connected to his network, he told her of the complete and utter annihilation of Earth, the abominations that now roamed the continent and of the Courier and how he had assisted in conquering the NCR and Caesars Legion. And of how the Courier had transferred his mind into a new body full of cybernetic implants.

"Oh my," began Toriel, lips trembling, "That's such a horrid world you live in. Why wouldn't Frisk tell me of this . . .?" She asked, mostly to herself however.

"Indeed it is, although with the help of the Courier and my immense knowledge, I should be able to restore order and peace to the lands." Robert concluded.

Wiping her eyes, Toriel called for Robert to follow her and the rest of their journey was left in complete silence, undisturbed by the monsters that covered the Ruins. At the end of their long walk through puzzles, that Robert let Toriel solve, they came to a nice, large house made of crumbling, purple stone. There was a dark brown tree in the middle of the pathway to Toriel's house, with many red leaves scattered around it. Toriel let out a sigh of pride and walked ahead, with Robert following close behind, examining every nook and cranny.

"Welcome to your home Robert! You'll be staying here for a little bit before we go out and meet my friends outside of the Ruins." Toriel shouted in delight.

"Hrm. If I must for the time being. You seem to resemble a human, _slightly_ , so I assume that you have a bed of some assortment? Would you happen to have any spares?" Robert asked as he walked through the hallways.

Toriel nodded and lead him to a spare room.

"It was my husbands before he, left. You can use it now though. I doubt that the bed that I usually give to the humans that fall down here would be big enough for you." Chuckled Toriel.

"Wait, there were other humans? When did they appear? How old were they? What did they look like?" Came the bombardment of questions from Robert.

"I can tell you all about it tomorrow Robert. Just have a good night's rest and tomorrow you can ask all the questions you like", Toriel replied through laughs.

"If I must." Came the reply from Robert, albeit begrudgingly.

Walking into the room that Toriel had pointed to, he muttered a 'Good night', and descended into the room. In all honesty, for a mutant, Robert had expected a little bit more _pizzazz_ or something along those lines. It was bland to be honest. A small bedside table with a lamp, a bookshelf, a desk, a picture of some friends. At least he had a few plant pots here and there to spruce up the place.

Sighing to himself, Robert took of his coat and placed it on the desk. Taping a few buttons on his Pip-Boy, he relayed his journey so far and transmitted it to the Courier's Pip-Boy. Before he descended into the realm of sleep, he told his Securitrons, who had silently followed along scanning everything, to patrol the area outside the house and tranquilize any harmful entities that would have ill intentions.

Robert descended into a relaxing sleep in a bed that was about 3x bigger than him and didn't hear the crack of a door opening and the light chuckle that Toriel gave off as she lay the Butterscotch and Cinnamon Pie on the ground.


	3. Magic Training

Chapter 3

Robert House was awoken from his deep slumber by the sound of humming and pots and pans clashing. Waking up in a bed that wasn't his, an instant wave of memories crashed into him. He had fallen into Mount Ebott and was currently in the residence of a mutant, Toriel. Rubbing his eyes, he made a reminder to himself to have a large bottle of wine once he got back to the Lucky 38. Stretching as he walked to the desk, he grabbed a photo displaying a broad-chested anthropomorphic goat with large horns protruding from his forehead, presumably Toriel's wife, and another, smaller goat wearing a green sweater with yellow stripes standing next to him. He placed the picture frame containing the photo down as he heard the tell-tale sound of footsteps approaching.

"Hello my child, it seems that you are awake", came Toriel's statement, "Would you please follow me to the dining room?" she finished.

"I'll accompany you, but I must be leaving soon. While it wouldn't be impossible for me to coordinate the revival of all high-end technology and eventually create colony ships to perform a mass exodus to a much more promising planet than the hell-hole above land from a computer screen" said Robert, indicating to his Pip-Boy, "It would be rather difficult and may delay these things by a year or so." He concluded, smug smile adorned upon his face.

"Oh, uh, a mass exodus to a different planet? A fan of Science Fiction are you? I think I have a few books of that category around here." Chuckles were stifled as Toriel spoke, the imagination of humans never ceased to amaze her.

"Harrumph, another disillusioned naysayer. I'll have you know that I have, or more so _had_ , a partnership with REPCONN, a company based around space-flight. But ever since the bombs had fallen, I now have full ownership of their company, with all the blueprints and prototypes they had developed. I should have humans in the depths of our galaxy within a hundred years or so. Anything is better than what resides on this planet. Have you ever seen a man's intestines pulled out through his mouth, via a drugged up boxer? It's revolting and unpleasant." Robert reply came, disdain laced in his words.

Robert then promptly walked pass the dumfounded Toriel, straightening his suit as he went.

"What've we for breakfast?" Asked Robert when he was standing in the large kitchen.

Toriel, shaking out of her stupor, paced down the hallway towards Robert.

"My child, what-what have you seen above there? Is it really that bad, for you to know such a-a disturbing subject?" Stuttered Toriel, quite scared.

"Hahahah, of course it's not that bad," Robert chuckled, amused with her question, "It's _much_ worse. I once saw a brain stem ripped-" Robert began, before being cut off.

"No, no, there's no need for any more graphic imagery thank you. Why do some humans hate each other so? What's provoked these horrid actions?" She said.

"Money was the main source of this, amongst other things, like shiny stars on bottle caps. I assume you're all associated with gold coins and such, judging by what lays upon your table. Ever since the war _bottle caps_ have been the new 'currency'," One could hear the quotation marks from his tone, "Although, Nuka-Cola did mass-produce their beverages and sold them all across the globe, so I suppose it's not too outrageous." Robert concluded.

Toriel just nodded, not too sure of his ramblings.

"This war, you went over how it happened before. How has humanity, _recuperated_ , after the attack?" Came Toriel's question.

"Well, there are - was 4 major-we'll call them factions-that were hoping to have some major involvement with the Mojave. There was the Legion, a faction based upon the methods of the Romans, who were a very powerful people. They fashioned metal and other such resources to resemble the Roman's armour, before their demise, that is. (Caesars New Regime - Legion Overhaul. That's the mod that I've based the armour upon). They used the brutal technique of crucifying all those who supported the NCR and those who got in their way, among other tortuous activities they've subjected people to. If they had won, they would've crumbled after the death of their leader, Caesar. The New California Republic, the NCR, are the polar opposite of the Legion.

They had what resembled a solid nation, like that of before the war. But that's it. They followed the ways of the Old, leaving no space for the new. They were obsolete. So they had to go. There once was a man by the name of Benny, whom was to be my protégé. At least before he decided to betray me. He shot a courier in the head for _my_ platinum chip. Said courier survived, and against my better judgement, tried to, ehm, _negotiate_ , with him. If you'd call negotiating pointing a gun towards his head, whilst pressing a fire iron into his arm. Aside from this action, the courier was plenty nice. I hired him to complete several tasks for me. He garnished the trust and help of some former Vault Dwellers who had turned into a reclusive group who would kill anyone on sight, secured some Enclave Remnants for me, employed the Great Khans, gained the help of some Doctors, secured some technology from the Big MT, etc. With the help of these people and the weapons he'd procured, we were able to secure Hoover Dam. After some more negotiating, the NCR had agreed to leave me and my business alone. The Courier hunted down Caesar, because of a little . . . _fight_ , they had, and lashed him to a cross in front of his Legion. Afterwards, Caesar's army killed each other, like the dogs they were. The Vault Dwellers, Boomers, continued to work for the Courier and by extension, me. They now roam the Mojave in the plane they've secured, dropping bombs upon groups of bandits and other such ruffians, if I give the say so, that is. The remnants of the Enclave have split up once again and they're location remains unknown to me at this time. The Great Khans have left the Mojave to, _recover_ their legacy. As if they had one in the first place, they're glorified raiders, no wait, they _are_ raiders. The Followers of the Apocalypse, the doctors, still work for me in Freeside, and they supply the NCR citizens in Vegas with medicine and such. And the scientists in the Big MT, those who gave the Courier some technology, weapons, medical machines, defences and generally useful things, are hard at work experimenting with my Securitrons.

After I secured Hoover Dam's power, I extended my reach across the Mojave some more. I sent out the Securitrons, the robots outside, across the desert and laughed as they rapidly asserted their dominance. Now most, if not all of the towns in the Mojave are paying me a monthly tax. The money's pouring in and soon enough, the best-of-the-best should be able to leave this blasted, horrid planet behind and find haven amongst the stars, while the undesirables rot below! Soon enough . . ." Robert concluded, his long speech sinking into Toriel's mind.

Toriel was silent for a minute, leaving Robert quite confused.

She then spoke, "What of me and the rest of the Underground? Will they be left here, to rot, as you put it?" Toriel asked, her hands shaking and tears threatening to spill.

Robert, either oblivious to her current mind-set or just didn't care, responded, "Well, as of now, you appear to be a fine candidate to come onto the ship. But I doubt that you'll live long enough to see my plan come into fruition. 100 years is quite a long time, at least compared to individuals like yourself. While 100 years pales in comparison to how long I'll be able to live, if I continue the cycle of transferring my consciousness, I doubt that you can live for a century. Although, you are a mutant, so. . ." Robert House explained.

"Robert, just to let you know, neither I nor any of the other Monsters in the Underground are mutants. Well, perhaps the amalgamates, but that's a different story. From what I've gathered from the books that've fallen, a mutated creature is someone or something that has been affected by radiation. Also, I've lived for thousands of years, and I would've lived for longer. I used to be immortal, in a sense, but my child was returned to me by Frisk, who used to be the latest human to fall into the Underground. But now you've taken up that title. Now, I should be able to finally rest, within 2 centuries or so. I'm a special species of Monster, a Boss Monster. We are stronger than your regular Monster, but our Soul's strength pale in comparison to that of a humans. Boss Monsters can live forever, unaffected by age, but if one Boss Monster has a child . . ." went Toriel softly, "They start to age, alongside their child. I would've lived forever, as my son Asriel's life was taken by Humans, but Frisk brought him back. Now, as he grows, so too will I." Toriel finished, smiling happily to herself.

"Hrm. This is a, surprising revelation, to say the least. I suppose my Geiger-Counter wasn't on the fritz. I'll have to take a couple of skin samples and test them, after I get to my tower of solitude. Also, what did you mean when you mentioned a Monster's Soul was weaker than a Human's Soul? Do you mean that in a metaphorical sense, or something literal?" Robert inquired.

"Well, human's souls are much stronger in terms of DETERMINATION. A Human has more DETERMINATION, meaning their soul can last longer after death, when compared to a Monster. Monster's Souls are fragile, and are more dependent on emotional willpower. Almost all Monster Souls, regardless of the amount of DETERMINATION they have, shatter almost instantly once pressured enough, or shortly after they've been ejected from their body. Human Souls can last much longer after death. While Monsters are quite adept at performing magic, Human Souls can utilize magic to its maximum potential. Spells that utilize the elements, like fir -" Toriel was explaining, before being cut off by Mr House.

"Now hold on just a minute, 'Miss "I'm going to drop a bomb about magic onto you"'. Magic isn't real. It's just smoke and mirrors, or something relating to science in a way." Robert countered.

Toriel, smiling to herself, lifted her hand. And without a word summoned a ball of fire, laughing as Robert watched ridiculed.

"Bu—that's no possible!" Robert shouted, "How're you doing that!?" He demanded, getting up from his chair to study the fireball.

"It's funny. You remind of Chara, my adopted son, in a way. He was always asking questions about the magic I performed. He . . . He's gone now, he was a human. He came to be my son a thousand or so years ago." Toriel reminisced.

Lifting his Pip-Boy, Robert got to work, using various filters and scanners to gauge the fire-magic. Taking several photos to store in his archive, Robert lowered his Pip-Boy.

"It looks like I have somethings to teach you," began Toriel, "Come to the living room, grab a chair if you want." She finished.

Robert, wanting to learn all he could of this new power he'd seen, obeyed Toriel without question, taking a chair with him to the Living Room. He lowered it in front of her rocking chair, and got comfortable, ready to absorb knowledge. Toriel came in, lit the fireplace with her magic, and informed Robert of the Monster's history, with Robert aptly listening. Toriel told Robert of the war that decimated most of the Monster's population, the Seven Mages and how they sealed them in the Underground, the expansion of the Underground, the other Human's that fell, Asgore's plan to utilize the Humans Souls to become a God, Frisk and how they brought Asriel back. She also told him of her friends and all that they had accomplished. They had stopped the Underground from falling into a depression of a sorts, as the Human Souls had disappeared and the Barrier remained.

Robert sat quietly, processing the information he received.

"I . . . hmmm. This is very odd. I'll need some time to compile this information. While that's happening, could you further clarify what you know of magic?" Robert asked intrigued, needing a distraction.

"Ah! Of course I can do that. I love teaching Asriel, but he's only a child. His Soul can only take so much magic. Any who, let's start off with checking out your Soul. You can tell how powerful someone is by 'feeling' the DETERMINATION that they have. If you want to bring out your Soul, you have to compel it to come out. Think about what you strive to achieve, what your values in life are, who you care about, things that matter to you. Think about all these things, and bring out your Soul.

Chuckling to himself, Robert began to think about these things. He thought of his goals for Humanity, his work, his friend/employee the Courier and Jane his robotic girl, who was soon to receive a body from the Big MT. He thought of his paradise, New Vegas and the years he'd put into it, making it a beacon to all those that resided in the Mojave. He thought about this and felt a small item leave his body. It didn't harm him in any way, it only seemed to bring out warm feelings of power and happiness. Opening his eyes, Robert peered at the new, floating item that lay before him. It was a copper-ee, bronze like heart, with a clean sheen to it.

"Ah yes, this is what that flower tried to take from me. Why would he want it? I don't see what he could gai - oh right, you went over that. He's a soulless flower who wants a Human Soul to become a God of a sort. I've learned how to manoeuvre my Soul, watch." Robert ended, showing Toriel his ability to make to float around the room.

"Good job! Now let's try to make some magic!" Toriel gleefully said.

"I can perform magic? Do tell?" Robert asked joyfully, feeling like he'd just had a couple of Mentats.

"While most of the Humans that I've encountered had never performed magic in their lives, nor had they seen it, they all still possessed the innate ability to perform magic. Just concentrate on 'warm feelings', things that bring you joy. While you don't necessarily have to, it makes it easier to perform." Toriel explained.

Robert nodded in reply, and began to concentrate on 'warm feelings', whatever that meant. He made a shot in the dark and assumed it had something to do with feelings regarded as, generally nice and happy ones. Drawing forth memories of triple seven's on slot machines, Jane, his Casinos and the Dam that he controlled, Robert felt a small force materialize above his left hand. Looking down, Robert was met with a small, orange flame, no smaller than the light of a candle. Even so, this didn't stop the look of wonder and awe that came upon his face. Moving his hand around in various positions and angles, Robert felt a sense of power. Fire, while rather barbaric and basic, was quite a powerful tool. And he could control it with his hand.

"How do I use it?" Was his one question to Toriel.

"Well, you can use it in many ways. If you want to cast it out, like I did with my fire, then simply thrust your hand out and imagine it being forced away. Once you have an even better understanding of the principles of magic, you can eventually make patterns and art-work out of it. Now, try to expand it. As you practice with magic more and more, you'll eventually be able to harness a better understanding of it.

And for the next 2 hours, Robert experimented with fire magic. After a small incident involving Robert somehow lighting water on fire, they moved outside towards a small training circle. This was behind the house, and had a simple training dummy situated towards the end of the circle. Robert learned how to change the shape, density, size and power of the fireballs he produced. While he wasn't an expert, far from it, Robert had a basic understanding of magic in general, and could summon a decently sized fireball within 10 seconds.

"Brilliant! Now, how about we try some Ice Magic eh?" Toriel asked giddily.

"Sure, is it any harder in any which way?" Robert asked, with a hint of apprehensiveness.

"While it is slightly harder to control solids, it's only by a small amount. There's not much difference when performing Ice Magic, you just have to concentrate on 'warm feelings' yet again, but think about drawing out a solid. Ice Magic is released in short bursts, but when you have a better understanding of Ice Magic, you can form it as water first, then solidify it." Toriel explained.

"Ah, I suppose that makes sense, I think." Robert replied.

Performing the same procedure that he used to make a fireball, he instead imagined a square of ice. Nothing all too difficult, just a cube. Breathing out through his nose, Robert raised his right hand and shot out a stream of ice. The ice impacted the dummy and solidified part of its nose.

"Huh. Baby steps Robert, baby steps." Robert said out loud, mostly to himself.

" _Screw you guys~ . . . you suuuuuuck~_ " Came a mysterious, ghostly voice, seeming to emanate from the Dummy's general direction.

The training dummy started to ascend in the air, casting an evil glare towards Robert.

"Ariel Assault detected. Return Fire commencing." Came the monotone reply of the Securitrons in response to the dummy.

The Securitrons, outside of Toriel's house, retracted their arms and opened their shoulder compartments. Inside housed an array of missiles, which were promptly used. They sailed through the air and, while a few missed and hit the walls of the cavern, impacted the dummy. The possessed mannequin burst into tiny pieces of cotton, which fell upon Robert and Toriel.

" _You guys are the worst. Screw you for real, screw you for reaaallll~_ " The mysterious voice emanated again, this time coming from a white mass of energy and ghostliness.

The Securitrons extended their arms and rolled up to the shell-shocked Toriel and the annoyed Robert.

"Subject Neutralized. Have a nice day citizens." The speakers of the Securitrons said, their stoic solider faces un-changing.

Several seconds passed and the Securitrons returned to patrolling. Robert turned to the slack-jawed Toriel and made a sheepish reply.

"Ah, hmm. Sorry about them. I've programmed them in such a way to act upon any nefarious enemies, and they must've thought that the . . . ghost . . . was one such enemy. It's a necessity for their programming to act that way, however. Violence and malicious intent aren't uncommon from where I come from, hence why." Robert replied to Toriel's silent question.

"Bwah - I - What, what did they do!?" Toriel shouted out, surprised by the powerful display that the robots demonstrated.

"Oh how I love this," Came Robert, "The Securitrons, the robots patrolling right now, are the pinnacle of my ingenious design. They have a built-in armoury, allowing them to serve as soldiers for my army. Their titanium casing is resistant to small arms fire, such as guns and pistols. These are weapons that Humanity developed that are capable of killing someone. Here, I'll show you a gun that I have on hand." Robert replied to Toriel's confused look.

Reaching into his suit, Robert pulled forth a small pistol that was hidden within a pocket of his coat. It was ornate, made of gold. It was the very gun used to shoot the Courier. It was a gun that deserved to be held in the hands of a very rich, very powerful person. It was Maria.

"This is a pistol, I'll demonstrate its uses and how to properly use it." Robert explained, raising the gun towards a circle drawn across the wall.

Grabbing a magazine from his pocket, Robert gently slid it in to the slot provided. Turning the safety off and cocking the hammer, Robert was ready. Aiming down the sights with ease, due to his optical enhancement, he pulled the trigger with a bang and watched as the bullet sailed through the air. A small _thud_ of a sort could be heard as the 9mm bullet lodged itself dead-centre in the target. Turning the safety on, Robert placed the gun back into his suit and turned to face Toriel's dumbstruck face.

"This type of gun, a 9mm pistol, is easily found across the Wasteland. However, considering the fact that this is made of gold and has pearls and other such delicacies, you won't find a gun like this, or you won't find a gun like this with ease." Robert concluded, feeling like a rich kid showing off his new toy to the class.

"I - I've never seen such power, from such a small thing like that. And you say this could, could kill someone?" Toriel asked, appalled.

"Well, yes. Kill or maim, depending on whether or not the shooter's having a good or a bad day. They are widely available and are easily accessible. I've already bought a few companies to manufacture them, namely being the Gun Runners. I've also told the scientists that work for me in the Big MT to start researching new weaponry, so that's all well and fine." Robert explained.

"Readily available? Dear me, the world above really has come to an end, hasn't it?" Toriel told herself sadly.

"Ah, well, not necessarily. I plan on expanding my city, New Vegas, across the entire Mojave. And aside from a few hotel incidents, my city is entirely safe from anybody hoping to threaten me or my citizens. While I'm not entirely sure of the state of the rest of the world, yet, I'm sure that things aren't so bad." Robert lied. While he believed in the sanctity of his city, he doubted that the state of the rest of the world was faring well. With Super Mutants, ghouls, bloatflys and other mutated creatures running rampant across the world, the planet wasn't looking so good. And Cazadors, he can't forget Cazadors. They're the worst of the worst.

"Oh, well, hmm. It's good to know that there is some good in the world. Thank you for trying, Robert." Toriel told Robert gleefully.

"Thank you, Toriel. Now, back to explaining my greatest invention," Robert continued with a grin, "Securitrons, come." Robert commanded.

"Sir." Came their curt reply to Robert's demand.

"Give us a demonstration of your prowess. But don't go _too_ out of hand, hmm?" Robert told the Securitrons.

And without a word, the Securitrons activated their Gatling Lasers, aiming it towards the circle upon the wall.

"The Securitrons have an X-25 Glastinghouse Gatling Laser, allowing for them to act upon targets at medium ranges." Robert paused, allowing the Securitrons to attack the wall, "In their right hand, they have a 9mm Submachine Gun, which can be used at close-range quarters, against soft targets, and is rather effective at crowd-control," He paused again, allowing the bullets to smash against the wall, "In their left hand and shoulders, they have an impressive array of explosives available. In their left hand, they have a G-28 Grenade Launcher. Grenades are devices that can be thrown, and after a short few seconds, they explode. However, the grenades I've loaded into the Securitrons explode upon impact with any surface. Their shoulders contain M-235 Surface-to-Air missiles, allowing for them to attack targets at long-distances, as was displayed earlier." Robert finished, allowing the Securitrons to show off their explosives.

"That's, quite dangerous, Robert. And you developed these?" Toriel asked, curious.

"Well, yes. Even before the Great War, we still needed to have defences of a sort. What with addicts, rapists, criminals of every sort, and other such displeasures. My Securitrons were made to counter these, and were quite effective. But since the world ended, and raider clans like the Fiends started appearing, I needed them to be able to defend my city. You'd understand more if you were above ground." Robert explained, having thought the answer was obvious.

"Well, until Alphys, the Royal Scientist, can make artificial human souls, I'm afraid there's nothing we can do to break the barrier." Toriel replied.

"Ah yes, this Royal Scientist. How has she helped the Underground?" Robert asked, intrigued with how far they've advanced.

"Alphys helped develop several devices for everyone in the Underground to use. She invented a device that allows for long-range communication, which she has dubbed a 'phone'. She's also helped to improve several machines that Monsters use on a daily basis, such as a fridge and an oven. Alphys also partook in experimenting in DETERMINATION, that her predecessor had started to work with. She did this in secret, as she made a mistake while experimenting. She used DETERMINATION in an attempt to help revitalize the Souls of Monsters who had fallen, but she didn't understand the effects of DETERMINATION well enough to know what would happen. The Monsters she used the DETERMINATION on . . . melted in a way. They all fused together into an Amalgamate, and the Underground only recently learned of their existence. Alphys was scared we would judge her, and perhaps punish her for her actions. She was insecure and anxious before, and still is, but she's gotten better. She's recuperated, in a sense." Toriel went on, informing Robert.

"Fascinating," Came Robert, "Now then, how's about we continue with this Magic training, eh?" Robert asked, wanting to learn more about this unknown resource.

"Ah, yes! Now, back onto training with Ice. It's much easier to start with basic bursts of Ice magic, instead of trying to form shapes. You can use it to solidify objects, and with a better understanding, make an object colder without freezing it," Toriel explained, before raising her right hand, summoning several targets, "Here, have a go at striking these." She finished.

"Magnificent! What type of Magic is that, to allow you to summon objects!?" Robert yelled, taken aback by the targets with a purple hue.

"Ah, this school of Magic is called 'Summoning', as it can be used to bring forth a plethora of different shapes. While you can use it to make anything, it is recommended that only those with a high magical endurance attempt this, and all other novices stay with summoning shapes." Toriel told Robert, happy with his enthusiasm.

"Brilliant, just brilliant," Robert told himself in awe. If her continued studying the art of magic, no being could stand in his way. It would certainly speed things along, and he was sure that the Courier wouldn't mind learning this art too, "Righto then, back onto Ice Magic." Robert concluded, before raising his right hand again.

Breathing in, Robert extended his index finger out, attempting to expel the magic through one appendage. Releasing his breath, Robert expelled the magic, and watched in fascination as it swirled towards one of the summoned targets. It shattered against the frame, making the shield wobble, but not break. Annoyed, Robert expelled more Ice, this time through his entire hand. The shield faltered, shimmering out of existence for a moment, before returning to its former state. Angry now at the barriers persistence, Robert raised both hands and brought forth Ice. But instead of instantly casting it out, he let it build up. Once Robert felt that it was ready, he cast it out towards the barrier, grinning happily. The congealed mass impacted the purple shield and a large _crack_ could be heard echoing throughout the Ruins. The remains of the shield lay scattered across the floor, and Robert stood there, panting heavily after exerting that much energy.

"Well done Robert. I may have made that shield a little too strong, just as a test. You passed, heh." Toriel told Robert, explaining why it didn't shatter instantly.

"Hrm. Well then, let's continue." Robert replied.

And for the rest of the afternoon, Robert practiced all sorts of Magic, gaining a basic understanding of them all. By the end of the day, he knew how to summon fireballs, freeze objects, create walls that reflected the colour of his soul and learnt how to use these against Toriel.

"* _Huff Huff_ * Well - Well done Robert," Began Toriel, taking in great breathes of air in-between words, "I haven't - haven't gotten a workout like that in - quite a while." She finished.

"My - my pleasure," Robert replied, surprised by how tired he was feeling. Magic must've drained him emotionally, as his enhancements should've eliminated any exhaustion he should've received physically, "Wow - I haven't felt this tired in a while. Thank you, Toriel, for teaching me." Robert told Toriel, extending his hand, preparing to shake hers.

"Ah - it was no trouble. I'm ready for - for sleep. Have a good night, Robert. We can leave to Snowdin tomorrow, it's where my friends should be." Toriel told him, shaking his hand before returning inside.

Robert nodded his head, before raising his left hand. Recording a few notes of his day into his Pip-Boy, Robert set a timer to wake him up. Returning to his room, or rather Toriel's ex-husband's room, he fell asleep, exhausted.

 **Authors Notes:** Yay, another chapter done! A longer one, at that. Hopefully this will make up for the long wait (?). Sorry for my absence, yet again. Knowing me, these chapters won't come out too frequently, but I will try! Also, just a quick question to whoever may be reading this, but should I let other people fall into the Underground, potentially evil ones? Just to spice it up a little bit, add some action/danger into the mix. What'd you think? Tell me in the reviews, buddy o' pal ole friend of mine. Have a good one!


	4. Mysterious Visions and Snowdin Town

Chapter 4

 **Authors Notes:** Hello! I've decided to make a few adjustments to the story, in a way. Robert isn't the most Determined being in the Underground, that title still belongs to Frisk/Chara, yet he can see DETERMINATION Stars. Because of his mystical cybernetic eye? Or maybe because of Gaster? I don't know, I suppose I'll find out as I continue to write. Also, I thought of this earlier, but wouldn't it be cool if Handsome Jack fell into the Underground? He's much more fun than Robert is. It could be his purgatory or something. I'll put that idea into the pending section of stories. Anyway, enjoy the story! Actually, Mafia-Tale. Now there's an interesting base for a story, don't you think? I just have to mention, if anything in this chapter happens to contradict with what's been mentioned before, just roll with it. I've also gotten the idea of Robert transferring his consciousness into one of the Sink's Lobotomite's bodies, from a story called 'The White Hand of Robert House'.

The soft vibrations against his synthetic skin awoke Robert from his sleep. Mentally commanding his Pip-Boy's alarm to stop, he arose with a groan. Getting out of bed he stretched his back, enjoying the pops and other such sounds that occurred when he did this. Grabbing his coat, he left the room to enter the kitchen. There, Toriel was making breakfast, humming a merry tune to herself.

"Morning Toriel", Robert offered.

"Oh, Robert. It's good to see that you're awake. How're you feeling?" Toriel asked in return, curious to see how his body handled Magical stress.

"Weaker than I've felt in quite some time. It's refreshing, in a sense. To feel this tired and sore. One forgets what it's like, after having several implants put into your body to remove these very feelings. It's odd." Robert told Toriel, opting her to ask a question.

"Ah, hmm. You've mentioned this before, these implants. What are they?" Toriel asked, making Robert smile.

"My employee, the Courier, happened to come across a special facili -", Robert began explaining, before being interrupted by Toriel.

"What is his name, this Courier?" Toriel asked, having never heard Robert tell her his name.

"I – I don't know. This is one of the many mysteries that the Courier keeps from me. I tried asking him once, but he just stormed out with his duster flowing in an unseen breeze. From then on, I kept on referring to him as 'Courier', but it never seemed to agitate him, sadly," Stopping to let Toriel nod her head, Robert picked up from where he was before, "So, the Courier found a facility in the Big MT, a crater full of the world's 'Greatest Minds', one of which who wishes I was dead. In this crater, he would've been lobotomised, which is a fancy word for having your brain removed," Toriel flinched at this, "He would've had his brain removed, had Benny not shot him. The machine there had to work around this flaw, and thus improved his brain. And several other body parts. His brain was removed and flushed down God knows where, his heart was replaced with a technical pump and his spine was removed and replaced with a new, stronger one made of titanium (if that's possible, I don't know). Ultimately, he kept these upgrades and is now classified as a cyborg. Anyway, whilst browsing through the facility, he came across some Lobotomites, victims of the brain-extractor. He took a handful of them and found a cosmetic surgeon to change the bodies of these Lobotomites. They looked exactly like myself, before I became a malnourished man hooked up to wires and such. I was able to transfer my consciousness into one of the many look-alikes and I upgraded their bodies as well. The implants are devices that improve how I function. I'll give you a demonstration of what I can do later on.

And if the Courier happened to be less nice, then I would've been able to transfer my consciousness to any ole Lobotomite had I felt the need, but he deemed that action to be 'un-humane'. So I've opted to task some scientists that I've sent over to the Big MT to start researching the art of Cloning. That should appease the Courier, at least." Robert finished his long speech, preparing his breakfast as he went.

"That's quite the recount, Robert. What is Cloning, exactly?" was Toriel's short question.

"Cloning is where you replicate something, to either be exactly the same, or close to the same. In this case, it would be used for cloning human bodies, hopefully to the atomic level. Imagining it now, I could have an army of Couriers, if he were to clone himself. I could fulfil General Oliver's wish, if only to spite him." Robert explained to Toriel, as he went through the kitchen preparing his meal.

"Oh, I see! Here in the Underground, we have a type of Magic similar to that. It allows us to make an exact copy of an object, although it uses quite a lot of energy. While I don't know it myself, I'm sure that there's someone else that does. It was used to assist us in the war efforts, we used it replicate swords and other weapons." Toriel told Robert, piquing his interest.

"This sounds interesting, I'll have to see if I can find this person and/or persons that knows of this Magic. It could prove very useful to me in the future. Can I use it replicate a human body?" Robert asked.

"I'm afraid not, Robert. The last time someone tried to do that, they ended up dying almost immediately. Magic is very dependent on the power of the SOUL, as I told you earlier. The monster who attempted this couldn't replicate a Human, and in turn a Human SOUL, for his SOUL paled in comparison to the amount of DETERMINATION that a Human had. It put too much strain on his SOUL, and he died." Toriel told Robert, dashing his plans of making copies of himself with Magic away instantly.

"Ah, that's a shame, oh well. It shouldn't take too long for the scientists to complete their work, however. And having more than one of me at any given moment, could prove . . . difficult, in a way." Robert replied.

Toriel simply nodded in response. After a short moment later, Robert came back into the room with a plate of spaghetti.

"I noticed that you have an abundance of spaghetti in the fridge. I must say, it looks rather go -" Robert was cut off as he took a bite, shuddering at the taste, "Toriel . . . Why do you have so much of this spaghetti! It tastes like -" Robert was cut off yet again, yet this time from no external force. He felt as if he'd have a very, _very_ **b a d-t i m e** , if he were to say something bad about the spaghetti. He couldn't place why, exactly, but he felt a chill settle around his very SOUL.

Robert continued, "It tastes like the 5-star meals I used to have back in Las Vegas, before the War. It's very delicious. Not bad whatsoever." Robert could've sworn that he felt a quiet, deep voice utter ' _Goooooood~_ ', in his left ear. But it must've been the wind.

"Oh, I'm glad you like it! There's a friend of mine, his name is Papyrus, he's known for the spaghetti he makes. He lives with some of my other friends, such as Sans and Frisk. You can meet them in Snowdin, soon enough." Toriel informed Robert, letting him know of the culinary master.

"Those are quite odd names. Papyrus and Sans, that is. They're the same names that we use to describe styles of writing. Papyrus and Comic Sans, are the names. Is there some way that the civilization down here obtains knowledge of the surface?" Robert asked, intrigued.

"There's an area in the Waterfalls, a place where many aquatic inhabitants reside, where things fall down. My friend Alphys commonly finds things called 'Manga' and 'Anime' at this location. My adopted child Frisk told me that anime is Robots kissing, giant guns, swords 10x the size of any human and really powerful magic." Toriel informed Robert.

"Hmm. That's very . . . interesting. I don't think I've heard of that particular type of genre, which is odd, considering my near omnipotence. I'm connected to the databanks that I've built back in New Vegas, which I've made a point to fill with everything I know." Robert told Toriel, making her confused.

"Oh, that's odd. From what Frisk has told me, Anime was very popular in the surface. Speaking of which, the description that Frisk has given me doesn't quite add up to what you've told me. I forget to bring this up with you earlier, other things got in the way and made me forget. Frisk told me that the surface was colourful and happy. He didn't mention any of the malicious things that you've told me of. This is very peculiar. We'll ask him about it soon enough, I suppose." Toriel told Robert, making him very confused.

"How old is Frisk?"

"He's around about 13, alongside Asriel, which is convenient."

"Interesting," finished Robert.

Robert prepared a different meal in the next few minutes, opting to cook something himself, instead of having this delightful spaghetti. Grabbing some toast, eggs and bacon, Robert was prepared to have a breakfast fit for a king. Using Fire Magic, although carefully, Robert was able to make the finest breakfast. And so, for the next 10 minutes, both he and Toriel ate their breakfast without a word spoken to one another. It was calming and peaceful. Rinsing both Toriel's and his plate, Robert was about to make a new note on his Pip-Boy, before his Securitrons called to him.

"Sir, we request your immediate presence" Came the Securitrons in unison.

Looking up from his Pip-Boy, Robert exited the house, leaving Toriel to sit dumfounded (or at least confused, in a way.)

"Yes, yes. What do you need?" Robert asked the Securitrons in an annoyed tone, preferring to stay inside where he could research upon the History of Monsters more.

"An unidentified presence was detected, originating from that hallway", the Securitrons supplied.

Mumbling to himself, Robert made towards the hallway his soldiers had indicated. Robert reached the end of the hallway, where it split off into 2 different ends. Robert noticed some sort of writing on the wall. He couldn't make it out, either due to its worn appearance or perhaps because of the language itself. It didn't match up to any dialect that he had in his Databanks. Turning back around, sensing no further threats, Robert was met with a scary sight. Blackness expanded from the path he had came from, slowly encompassing the entire room. In a little under 2 minutes, all Robert could see was darkness, seeming to get darker with each passing moment. Footsteps seemed to come from behind him, so he spun around, Maria raised with the intent of harming whoever awaited him.

" " A man, or some other creature, looked towards Robert. He had a white head and was wearing a black coat that seemed to pool forever at his feet. There were cracks in what Robert assumed was his skull, and 2 tiny white orbs that looked through him.

" " The creature moved its hands yet again, in an indescribable way, in an attempt to communicate with him, Robert mussed.

" **GASTER** " The creature, now identified as Gaster, told Robert. Already, Robert's system was transcribing the data it received furiously, trying to find a way to decipher it.

" " It began to shift its hands yet again, making long strides towards him as it went.

The creature, Gaster, reached his face. Robert cold feel the creature breathing on him, yet he couldn't see any sort of movement in its chest that would indicate that it was. Suddenly, its eyes expanded and his lower jaw seemed to dislocate. The creature's hands made for his neck, but just before they could reach, Robert was snapped back into reality.

Toriel was standing over him, shaking his shoulders with haste, attempting to awaken him. Tears coated her face, showing how distressed she was. When Toriel saw his eyes flutter open, she immediately graced him with a hug, whispering sentences that Robert only just managed to gather.

"I - I thought I lost another one. I - I promised myself that - that I wouldn't let that happen again. How weak of - me." Toriel went on, mumbling words that were directed to herself.

"Toriel . . . what happened?" Robert asked, the recent events still fresh in his mind.

For several moments, Toriel said nothing, simply holding him close. After 5 minutes of sustained silence, she finally answered.

"You - You fell over in the hallway here. I ran quickly to see what had happened, but you were just mumbling. Your eyes were rolled back and I was afraid. I didn't know what to do. I -" Toriel was cut off as she relapsed to crying.

Robert slowly came up from the ground, leaning his back against the wall. After noticing that Maria was still in his grasp, having not been used, he put it back into his suit. After having that, _interaction_ , with Gaster, Robert was still shaken up. The results from the diagnostics he had ordered had just came in, and Robert noted nothing out of place that would result in having a hallucination like that. Although, thinking about the nature of the Underground, he summed it up as being a magical event of a sorts. Which just brought up more questions. Questions that Robert didn't feel like answering at the time.

"Toriel, it's ok. I just tripped on a stray rock, there's no need to fuss," Robert didn't feel the need to tell her about the creature and the room he was in, it would only frighten her more, "I'm a cyborg, nearly nothing can harm me. There's no reason for you to be scared or afraid." Robert finished, doing his best to reassure her.

Standing up, Toriel wiped her eyes of any stray tears.

"Tha - Thank you Robert," Toriel began, "I'm sorry about this. It's just that, I've seen 6 children die. Frisk was the only human to make it through the Underground without his Soul being taken by Asgore, the King of the Underground. The others . . ." Toriel trailed off, staring into the distance.

Robert just nodded his head, allowing Toriel to deal with her memories. Eventually, she began to walk back to the house, beckoning Robert to follow. On the short way back to the door, Robert could've sworn that he saw a face peer at him from the corridor he had just come from, but he summed it up to be paranoia. They made their way inside the house, and Toriel went to her room, saying she needed some time. While Robert never had children to worry over, he could still imagine how distraught he would be if he were Toriel. Checking his Pip-Boy, Robert noticed that it was nearing 10 AM. So he decided that, until Toriel had recuperated, he would practice Magic. Going out into the courtyard, Robert prepared several shields for him to strike.

And so, for 5 hours, Robert practiced his Magic, sharpening his understanding of both Fire and Ice. He kept the size of the fireballs he produced reasonably small, just in case he happened to have a misfire and struck something flammable. And, against Robert's best attempts, the Ice he produced still came out in cone-like bursts, instead of shapes as he had tried. The shields he produced were also improving, slowly gaining more layers, adding to the density of the shields. After deciding that Robert had done all that his body, or his Soul, could handle, he decided to head back inside. There, he saw Toriel on her rocking chair, reading a book about Snails.

"Ah, Robert, it's good to see you. I'm sorry for how long I took, I just needed . . . some time." Toriel told Robert, smiling gleefully.

"It's quite fine. I practiced some Magic outside, so I suppose that we both gained something today." Robert replied, hoping to lighten the mood.

"Oh, I almost forgot! I told Sans that we were going to meet him! Ah, Robert, would you like to come to Snowdin with me?" Toriel asked, previous troubles forgotten.

"It sounds like an interesting place to go. And it could help further my research. Alright, it sounds like it could be a beneficial trip, let me grab my things." Robert replied, excited to meet some more Magical entities.

So Robert went to his room and gathered all of his possessions. Albeit not having many _to_ take. So now, equipped with his three-piece suit, his Pip-Boy and his gun, Robert was ready to leave.

"Oh, one last thing, sorry," Robert told Toriel, before mentally commanding his Securitrons to maintain a certain distance from Robert and Toriel at all times, ". . . and done. Alright, let's go." Robert finished.

"Good, follow me Robert. It's just through the door, at the end of this corridor." And so, Robert and Toriel made their trip to the one-way exit to the rest of the Underground, through the echoing hallways.

Reaching the doors, Toriel pushed them open, allowing a gust of cold air to flow in. Immediately, Toriel summoned a fireball, allowing her some warmth.

"Robert, just my fireball isn't enough to provide warmth for both of us, care to summon one of your own?" Toriel asked, concerned as to the wellbeing of Robert.

"It's quite fine, I have an internal heating system. The Courier insisted that I install one, saying that I might need it one day. Turns out I did, so good for him." Robert informed Toriel.

"The technology that you've developed is so fascinating. I'm sure that Alphys could learn quite a lot from you." Toriel complimented Robert.

"Hmm. I suppose. Perhaps we could broker a trade of a sorts? I'm sure there are some fascinating, unknown materials in the Underground that could prove to be useful to me." Robert pondered.

Toriel hummed in response, before facing forwards and walking down the expanse. Robert followed along, fascinated by the presence of snow underneath a mountain. He'd have to conduct some experiments later on, once he got out of MT Ebott, that is. Robert and Toriel went across several icy landscapes, across a wooden bridge that seemed far too stable for its location and finally came to a sign advertising Snowdin. The words, 'Welcome to Snowdin', were written in 2 different colours and had festive lights decorating the edges. All in all, Robert found it to be quite cheery.

"Sans and Papyrus should be just up ahead. Just follow me." Toriel told Robert, with a smile adorning her face.

"Right then. Let's go." Robert replied, eager to discover new forms of monsters.

Toriel began walking down the pathway, with Robert following along. Several monsters stared in surprise as to the new Human. Aside from hushed whispers, silence covered Snowdin.

 **Meanwhile . . .**

"Sans! What are you doing you lazybones!? Humans could've fallen down, and you know that the King has ordered us to capture Humans! Get off of your butt you – you – Gah! I don't even know what to call you, you lazy person!" Papyrus screamed at Sans, who was currently laying on a pile of snow.

"Paps, I would get up, but you know me. I'd try to capture some Humans, but I'm afraid that I -"

"Don't do it Sans!"

"Just don't have the guts"

"I can't believe you! Come on Sans, how will I get into the Royal Guard if I don't capture a Human to show to Undyne!?" Papyrus shouted at Sans, showing his frustration.

"Why don't you just capture Frisk? They're sleeping in their room right now." Sans told Papyrus, a lazy tone falling on his voice.

"You know I can't just capture Fri - Oh look! It's Asgore's Clone - It's Toriel! And there's someone behind them! He looks like a Human, but he seems a bit too tall." Papyrus turned to look at Sans, but all he could hear was a *woosh*, and Sans was gone.

 **Back to Mr House . . .**

"Hrm. Toriel, who is that?" Robert asked, indicating to the tall skeleton shouting at a pile of snow, with the imprint of someone on it.

"Oh, that's Papyrus. He's known for his loud voice, so please give him some time." Toriel informed Robert, showing him an almost . . . apologetic look.

"I've heard Dr Mobius speak, so I'm sure I can handle Papyrus." Robert assured Robert, casting a smug smile.

Toriel gave Robert a confused look, but eventually decided it was some obscure thing to do with the Surface. Robert neared Papyrus, and cleared his throat in an audible manner.

"SAAAAAA -! Oh, Miss Toriel! It's good to see you! And who's this tall Monster?" Papyrus asked, indicating to a person standing close to Toriel.

"Ah, Papyrus? That's a bear . . ." Toriel trailed off, pointing to the bear sleeping underneath a tall, decorated pine tree.

"Ah, so it is! Good eye Toriel!" Papyrus fell quiet for a moment, scuffing the ground with his foot.

"Hello ther -" Robert began, before being interrupted by a scream that could rival that of a Mirelurk King screeching into a megaphone.

"HUUUUMMMMAAANNNN! I HAVE TO CAPTURE YOU AND BRING YOU TO UNDYNE! NO WAIT! PUZZLES! PUZZLES GALORE! FOLLOW ME IF YOU DARE HUMAN, FOR I AM THE PUZZLE MASTER! NYEH NYEH NYEH!" Papyrus screamed at Robert, before running off to a large house.

There were several seconds of silence before Robert could say anything.

"Hold on, let me just . . ." Robert began, altering a few different settings on his Pip-Boy, " . . . and there we go. Sorry, I had to disable my ability to hear. I couldn't bear to listen to him speak after he opened his mouth." Robert informed Toriel with a straight face, flinching when he remembered the horrific sound that escaped Papyrus' mouth for a split second.

"Hehehe. Trust me, you'll be get used to it after a couple more days." Toriel encouraged Robert, giggling at his misfortune, in a playful-esque way.

"Let's hope so, I don't think my ears can handle another serving." Robert told Toriel, noticing the stress levels his ears had received.

"Whelp, for now, you can stay in the Inn. It's just up ahead, you can order yourself a room. Take some money, I'll be staying with Sans and Papyrus." Toriel said to Robert, handing him a small pouch of coins.

"Righto then, I'll go off and do that. Have a good night Toriel, I'll see you tomorrow." Robert said to Toriel, taking the bag and sliding it into a coat pocket of his.

And thus, with money in hands and a really cool looking coat, Robert marched off towards the Inn, ignoring the strange looks and remarks he received.

"Ah, hello there Human," the Innkeeper greeted Robert as he walked into the building, "IF you're looking to stay the night, it'll be 15 gold coins." She told him, hand outstretched. (I don't know, it could've been 15 coins.)

"Thank you ma'am, here you go," Robert began, handing her the pouch from his coat, "Just for the night. I can find my way up myself, thank you." Robert finished, rejecting her un-spoken offer.

The Rabbit-Monster just nodded her head and slid the coins into the cash register. Robert made his way up to his room and opened the door with his keys. He made sure to mute himself, as the snoring on the other side of the wall would keep him up indefinitely. Hanging up his coat and placing his weapons on the table, he drifted asleep in a bed smaller than Toriel's.


	5. Bar Fight and Vodka

Chapter 5

"Hey Toriel, who was that Human you were with? I didn't know that you were that bonely." Sans winked, smiling at Toriel.

"Oh, Sans! You surprised me, where'd you come from?" Toriel asked, looking to Sans who had seemingly popped out of nowhere.

"Oh you know. Shortcuts are my speciality. So about that Human . . . ?" Sans went on, walking forwards to match Toriel's pace.

"Oh him?" Toriel asked, pointing to the silhouette fading off into the background, "He just fell down, I found him while going on my routine. Flowey managed to find him first, however. I would say that I saved him, but that would be lying. He has two great, powerful golems - robots - that looked like they could protect Robert with little-to-no-effort. I think he called them . . . Security . . . something," Toriel explained

"Securitrons?" Sans asked, one eye peeking at Toriel while the other remained closed.

"Yes, that's right!" Toriel faced Sans, "How did you know?" She asked, staring at him with apprehensiveness.

"Word gets around." Was Sans' curt reply.

"Sans, can I tell you something?" Toriel asked, looking over at Sans with sad eyes, voice limp.

"I'm all ears," Sans said, pointing to the side of his head, "But seriously, what's up Tori?" He asked in a nonchalant manner, peeking down into the ketchup bottle he had pulled from thin air.

"It's about this new Human. He's told me of the world above," Toriel went, "Apparently, there was a war the occurred sometime 200 or so years ago. The land that we left is not quite as we remember it. Now all that remains are bandits and unpleasant people, all of which are murderous and violent! Guns are also easy to find, and almost everyone has one! But this Human is trying to do something about it, which is good. He's made a safe haven for people to relax and be safe." Sans took this cue to interrupt Toriel.

"What's this Human's name, eh? And is there anything special about him that separates him from the rest of the lot, like Frisk?" Sans asked, a faint ethereal glow starting to appear in his left eye.

Toriel, not noticing the small glow, replied, "His name is Robert House, which I though was a little bit odd at first. He's a - what did he call it? - a cyborg, that's right. He's like a Human, but he's traded his limbs for robotic ones. I think Robert's also traded some of his organs, but I can't be sure. He told me that he'd give me a demonstration of the enhancements that he's given himself, so you could probably come along as well. Why do you ask?" Toriel asked, looking over at Sans' short form.

"Just curious." Sans replied, "Whelp, I got to bounce, Papyrus needs his bedtime story." He ended the conversation, turning around.

"Well, if there's anything that you want to get off of your chest, just tell me." But when Toriel turned around to where Sans was, she found nothing but snow and his footsteps slowly being carried away in the wind.

Toriel's face scrunched up, and then she left.

* * *

Soft chirping fluttered in through the windows, and Robert found himself awakening. He must've adjusted the sound setting subconsciously, and luckily enough for him, the snoring was no longer present. Rubbing the sleep out of his eyes, he grabbed a pair of glasses from his bed table and put them on. While he didn't need them, Robert still liked the familiar and comfortable feeling that they gave him. It added a sense of normalcy to his life, like that of before the war. Robert raised his left wrist and began writing down his experiences so far, just to let the Courier aware of his current state and being. Satisfied, he sent the message to the Lucky 38 Database, knowing that the Courier would read it.

Looking at the time, Robert decided to leave. Closing his glasses, stretching and on donning his coat, Robert left the building, but not before asking the Innkeeper a question.

Walking up to the counter, he asked the curious rabbit a question, "What are some good places to un-wind at?" Robert, with all that had happened to him recently, needed time cool off.

"Oh uh - Grillby runs a bar, it's just up ahead." She told him, pointing to the general area of Grillby's.

Robert offered a 'thank you', before leaving. The door closed behind him with a small ding, and the sudden onset of coldness didn't affect Robert. (Why? Nanomachines, son). Looking around, Robert noticed a small group of Monsters slowly walking by him. The appeared to be, dogs? There were 5 dogs, of varying sizes, going to the building next to him. They were carrying around an assortment of weapons; knives, spears, large axes, and appeared to be on alert.

One of them began to talk, prompting Robert to act. He released a small drone and shot it towards a tree behind them. Ducking around the corner of the Inn, Robert listened in to the conversation from his Pip-Boy.

"Did you hear what they said? About the Human that was walking around 'ere?" A gruff, deep voice chimed in, coming from a dog wearing a pink shirt. A dog treat was in his mouth, and he appeared to be smoking it, if the trail coming out of it was anything to go by.

"About the one in the suit?" A feminine voice came, originating from a hooded individual.

"The one walking with Toriel?" A more masculine voice added, this time coming from someone dressed in the same garb, standing next to the aforementioned dog.

"Yeah, that's the one. I heard that he was in Snowdin, and that he's sleeping in the Inn as we speak." The pink-shirt-wearing dog said, eyes shifting back and forth.

Robert adjusted the camera drone, piloting it towards a roof of the bar he was going to, before these dogs showed up. They stood in-front of the door for a couple of seconds, looking around, before entering. Robert let out a breathe that he didn't realize he'd been holding, and recalled the drone. It seemed that his arrival was noticed, which was to be expected. He was getting a little bit too cosy with the lifestyle he'd been having, and it looked like he'd have to be dealing with some un-pleasantries soon enough. Tapping a few different icons on his Pip-Boy, Robert was able to activate the integrated Stealth-Boy Mk 3, an improved version that rendered the user _completely_ invisible to the naked eye.

So, walking to the front door of the bar, Robert was prepared to enter the building. Quietly opening the door and slipping inside, Robert was able to get a good layout of the room. There was a large table with 4 dogs playing poker, the 2 hooded figures, the muscle of the group and the pink-shirt dog. Just ahead of this table was a smaller one, with a short-necked dog playing poker, against itself? It - It was somehow losing, Robert was able to find out. He didn't know how, he just did. To the right of this table was a bar, with a Monster dressed in a black waistcoat and a white-button up shirt. Robert had to say, the Monster had a good taste in clothes. Said Monster was also made of fire, it appeared. There was a jukebox playing some song that Robert hadn't heard, with a bipedal horse in shades chillin' out. There was a table close to the front with no occupants, and 2 tables with Monsters seated at them. The Monster closet to him looked to be a rabbit of a sort, similar to the one that ran the Inn, who looked to be drunk, if the cartoonish-swirls were anything to go by. In the 2nd table was a yellow Monster who an abnormally large mouth . . . doing something. And lastly, Robert saw two Monsters that resembled fish leaning against each other at the bar.

Robert observed all of this in little under 2 seconds, thanks to his cerebral enhancement.

The pink-shirt bearing dog slammed down his stack of cards and peered at where Robert had entered, whispering under his breathe, "Did something move?"

The large dog in armour looked towards pink-shirt-dog, cocking his head to the side. Robert tried moving away from the entrance, hoping that the dog wouldn't notice.

"Hey. Hey! There's the Human! He's right ther - where'd he go?" Pink-shirt-dog yelled, pushing himself up from his seat. The others followed, not doubting Doggo's vision.

Robert, deciding that his cover was blown, uncloaked. Flicking out his right wrist, Robert brought forth his derringer. Aiming down the sights, he pointed it towards pink-shirt-dog.

"Don't move unless you want your brains splattered over that table." Robert said calmly, knowing that the derringer was on the 'non-lethal' setting.

Clenching his left hand, Robert created a decent shield, bringing forth a bronze transparent wall. All Robert received were a few laughs from the inhabitants of the bar, before the dogs brought forth their weapons.

"If you insist" Robert told them, sighing.

Robert shot 3 darts into the pink-shirt dog, smiling as his body slumped to the floor.

"Doggo! Why you little bast -" The female dog shouted, swinging her axe down in an arc.

In response to this, Robert swiftly dodged left, before punching her in the face, frowning when some of her blood fell on his suit. It was at this time that his shield stopped working.

"Dogaressa! I'll kill you, you sonovabitch!" The male dog said, pulling 2 tomahawks from behind his back.

He threw them, and time seemed to slow down for Robert. They were fast approaching, so he acted fast. Picking up an empty wine bottle, Robert threw it towards the on-coming projectiles. They collided, throwing the tomahawks off course. Reaching into his suit, Robert was going to pull out Maria, but another force stopped him. 2 large arms wrapped around him, lifting him up. Try as he might, Robert couldn't struggle free. Looking around, he saw that the dogs and he were the only occupants left in the bar. The others must've left, he mused. The two hooded-dogs walked towards Robert as one, both sharing the same malicious grin. The dogs raised their axes, before swinging down across his chest, brining on a wave of blood.

"Look Human, we're sorry about this." Dogaressa said, still sporting the same smile.

"But if we want to leave this blasted shit-hole, then we need to take your Soul, yeah?" The male dog finished.

Robert looked up towards them, and spat out a wad of blood, "It seems that you've forgotten something," Robert said, voice heavy and strained, "The House always win," Robert finished, smiling when the door burst open.

In came his Securitrons, their right hands raised.

"Die Scum." They said, simultaneously.

They sprayed out a wave of bullets, all of them hitting the Large Dog's armour. The Dog fell over, eyes closed. Robert took this chance to act, wrenching himself from the Dog's hands and kicking outwards. His foot hit the male dog's face, and he was sent reeling backwards. Dogaressa swung her axe and managed to slash Robert's face open. Robert, however, was undeterred, thanks to his pain-suppressant enhancements. His Securitron came in, swinging his left hand, hitting her. She fell to the floor, out cold.

Robert could kill them all now, if he so wanted to. But, he decided against that, finding himself too tired to put in the effort. So, posting his Securitrons either side of the door, he went behind the bar. Robert grabbed a bottle of Raspberry Vodka and poured himself a glass.

* * *

A whooshing sound was heard, and Sans appeared in front of Grillby's door, tired and hungry as per usual. Pushing open the door, he stepped in, and looked out across the bar. 4 dog bodies were scattered across the floor, all unconscious. Well, except for Greater Dog. His suit had a few holes in it, but he just seemed to be stuck inside it. And Lesser Dog was still playing poker, so that's good. Grillby was behind the bar, talking to the new Human. Said Human was bloody and had multiple cuts and rips in his suit and skin. The deep cuts allowed Sans to peer inside the Human, letting him see metal and such. The metal appeared to be a recent addition, if how clean it looked was anything to go by. Either side of the door were the Securitrons that Toriel told him about.

So, walking up to the bar, Sans spoke, "It looks like you've made quite the mess." He said, grabbing the ketchup bottle that Grillby had offered him.

Robert flinched when the Skeleton spoke, so taking another sip of his vodka, he responded, "They forced my hand, so I acted accordingly." Came Robert's bland voice.

"Sure pal. So, are you a Human? Or just a Robot like Mettaton?" Sans asked, taking a long chug of his ketchup afterwards. Toriel may have already told him, but he wanted to hear it from him.

"I'm somewhere in-between. I may look like a robot, but trust me, I'm not _completely_ made of silicone. Don't let the metal fool you, I'm not an Artificial Intelligence. I've only replaced around 55% of my body," Robert took another sip, "Alright, I've answered your question, now answer mine. Who are you?" Robert asked, looking down at his Pip-Boy as he spoke.

A small swarm of tiny robotic insects flew out from Robert's Pip-Boy and swarmed the damaged areas of Robert's body. The robots on the outer-layer changed colour, reflecting Robert's skin tone. Pulling out a handkerchief from his suit, Robert wiped any remaining blood from his face, before laying it on the table.

"Huh, cool. The name's Sans, Sans the Skeleton. And you are?" Sans said, before extending his hand towards Robert in a friendly gesture.

"Mr House, pleasure to meet you." Robert said, watching as the last of his robots converted themselves to his body.

Robert shook Sans' hand, and a fart sound came from it. Robert looked on with disdain evident on his face.

"The old whoopee cushion in the hand trick, eh?" Sans said with a happy, cheerful voice. Although his face didn't mirror this. He was frowning, sad, "The other Human found it funny. God, that other Human. Frisk . . ." Sans said, a few stray tears falling down his face.

Sans began to half-chuckle half-cry as he banged his fist into the table. Robert, watching this happened, felt as if this moment was familiar. As if he'd already seen it happen. But that wasn't possible, it must've been some error in his system. He'd run a proper-diagnostic once he returned to the Lucky 38. Drinking the last remnants of his vodka, Robert drummed his fingers on the bar, confused. He never really had to deal with people crying before, he was always too busy. So, in an attempt to comfort Sans, patted his shoulder.

"Y'know, this is strange. Out of all the numerous times I've met you, you've never done this. It's a nice change." Sans said, wiping some tears from his face.

Robert looked at Sans, one eyebrow raised in confusion, "Care to explain?" He said, removing his hand.

Sans opened his mouth, but before he could respond, the door-bell chimed and a childish voice spoke, "Sans? Is that you?"

* * *

 **Authors Notes:** Hey guys and gals! Shorter chapter this time 'round, just because I felt like pumping something out before the night ended (That doesn't sound right). So, in this chapter, I tried my hand at an action scene. I'm not too familiar with them, so your criticism would be appreciated! Also, cliff-hangers are cliff-hanger-y. Have a good night fellows! I decided to let Doggo's disability be useful for once. In this Universe, Doggo can see _anything_ that moves. Be it visible or invisible.


	6. Mysteries, Suits and General Banter

Chapter 6

"Sans, is that you?" Came a small, childish voice.

Wiping away any remaining tears from his eyes, Sans turned around to face the Human at the door. The Securitrons angled their torsos towards the Human as well, but made no further notion.

"Hey kiddo! What're you doing here? Shouldn't you be helping out Toriel or somethin', eh Frisk?" Sans asked, trying to hide the numerous ketchup bottles that lay on the table in front of him.

Frisk said nothing, instead he looked at the other Human that was sitting next to Sans.

"He - Hello? Are you Robert?" Frisk asked hesitantly, slowly walking up to Robert, who was still facing the bar.

When Robert swivelled around, Frisk let out a small gasp of surprise. Robert's right eye was leaking a white, goo-like substance, and small robotic insects were crawling around, trying to hold it all in. Noticing Frisk's look of shock, Robert covered his eye with his hand, hoping to comfort them. While the act was appreciated, it still didn't stop Frisk's stuttering and such.

"Y - Your e - eye! What happened to it!?" Frisk asked, slowly walking towards Robert.

"There's no need to fret, I'm quite all right. I just had a little . . . incident . . . with these dogs. One of them managed to nick my eye. I don't feel any pain, so that's all good. Just give me a moment, it should sort itself out." Robert told Frisk, activating a few things on his Pip-Boy.

A small swarm of nanomachines flew out, and began to patch up his eye, alongside the others crawling around. Frisk watched on as the goo was wiped back into his eye, and saw the nanomachines dissipate into the air.

"See? I'm quite fine." Robert said, taking another sip of vodka.

Realizing that the bottle was near-empty, he handed it back to Grillby, who took it without word. Frisk stared for a moment longer, before responding to Sans' question that he asked not long ago.

"Mum told me to see where you were. Apparently you left yesterday, and she was worried. But it looks like you're okay, so that's good!" Frisk told Sans, giving him a thumbs up. (Flicking around a butterfly knife isn't procrastinating, is it? Watching Duncan's Subnautica video isn't either, right?)

Frisk turned back to Robert, asking him a question, "Are - are you the new Human?" Frisk asked with an innocent tone, tilting their head.

Robert stood, and began to walk towards Frisk, leaving the bottle of vodka at the bar. He noticed, with curiosity, the way Sans rolled his eyes. It seemed to be directed towards Frisk, more so than him. Robert extended his hand to Frisk, smiling.

"Mr House, it's a pleasure. And you're Frisk?" Robert asked, staring down at Frisk.

"Yeah, it is," Frisk smiled, shaking his hand, "You're taller than the other Humans that I've seen. You seem familiar, have I seen you on TV before?" Frisk asked, faintly recalling something.

'Ah', Robert thought, 'Perhaps Toriel was wrong.'

"I am Robert Edwin House, CEO and Sole Proprietor of Robco. Industries. One of the richest men in the world, and the leading brand in all robotic needs. It's no surprise that you've heard of me." Robert announced, feeding his ego.

"Oh, that's where I've seen you before!" Frisk exclaimed, pulling out a phone from their pocket, "Take a look." Frisk finished, holding the device to Robert's face.

"What _is_ that? Some sort of small brick?" Robert asked, looking at Frisk's Monster Phone.

"Hmm? This is an MPhone, something that Alphys made. I'll show you what it can do." Frisk said, pressing the circular button at the bottom of the phone, the home button.

Frisk pressed the button, and the screen lit up. An image of Frisk, Sans and Papyrus was Frisk's wallpaper, and it was in colour, much to Robert's amazement. Before Robert could make out any words, Frisk unlocked the phone with an overly long password and displayed several apps.

"Ah, I assume that this is a magical construct?" Robert asked.

"Hey Buddy, you're acting like you've never seen a phone before. I guess you could say you're . . . . . Hmm, I can't think of any phone-y puns." Sans said, stifling a chuckle through his wide grin.

Frisk laughed alongside, almost dropping their phone.

"Uh, no. This is one of Alphys' invention, she made it herself," Frisk explained, staring on confused, "Haven't you seen a colour phone before?" Frisk finished, looking at Robert with curiosity.

"I haven't seen any device with colour or that small. Has this Alphys discovered something that I haven't?" Robert asked himself aloud, thinking about something that he could've missed.

"Oh, Alphys designed on this phone that fell from the surface, in fact, most of her inventions are based on things from the surface. Like a TV, for example. Also in colour." Frisk said, grabbing a seat from a nearby table to sit on.

"This is . . . confusing . . . to say the least. I'll have to meet this Alphys. Now, back to the subject at hand, you were about to show me something?" Robert said, straightening his suit.

"Oh yeah! Here," Frisk offered, showing Robert the photo of him, "It says here that . . . you . . . died. Hmm." Frisk finished reading, lowering the phone as they spoke.

"That can't be right," Robert said, taking the phone from Frisk, "Hmm, Monsterpedia, it seems to be a viable source of information." Robert said, staring at the phone.

Noticing Robert's frustration, Frisk tapped the link on the screen, opening Monsterpedia, saying, "It's touchscreen. You can scroll down, scroll up, tap icons on the screen, that kind of jazz." Frisk said, showing off some examples.

"My God. We never had anything like this, it's quite fantastic, I will say," Robert exclaimed, scrolling through the page, "Well, Frisk, you are correct. As it says, 'Robert House died in 1945 due to gunshot wounds.' And it seems that my brother killed me. I would say that this is Communist propaganda, but due to the other sources that I've seen. . . Have any of you seen a tall man with a cracked face dressed in black? I feel as if he, or it, more so, may have had some involvement with my current predicament." Robert explained, turning to Sans.

Sans, hearing this, chocked on his ketchup.

"Where - *Cough* - Who're you talking about?" Sans said, taking deep breathes.

Frisk stared on, feigning curiosity.

"I had a meeting with him. It was, odd, to say. I assume that you have some involvement with him, Sans? Due to your bombastic reaction, I assumed." Robert said with a small smug tone laced within his voice, raising an eyebrow.

"Woah, hey! Look at the time, I got to go, Papyrus needs his bedtime story! Pssh, you know how it is right, Robert, guy?" Sans said, stammering and making his way out of the bar.

"Sans, it's 8 o'clock. Isn't Papyrus awake?" Frisk asked, looking at their watch.

"Uhhh, yeah. I got something to do. Adult stuff, y'know kid?" Sans said, rubbing the back of his head in a nervous fashion.

Sans slowly walked backwards from Frisk, before walking in Robert's frame.

"Sans. I feel as if you aren't telling me something. Are you feeling all right?" Robert asked, feigning concern. As he spoke, he attached a small, covert device to the back of Sans.

It was a tracker. Robert made plenty of them to keep tabs of his opponents in the world of business.

"S'all good Robert," Sans said, smiling, "I just have to leave real quick. I'll be back soon enough - oh!" Sans stammered off, before tripping on an uneven piece of wood. He spilt his ketchup over Robert's suit, causing him to quickly apologise, before he left the room.

Roberts eye twitched, before he lifted his Pip-Boy. It displayed a small map, and on this map could Robert see Sans. He noticed the blip slowly move further away from the bar, before disappearing entirely for 5 seconds. The blip returned in a location at least 1km away from the bar, confusing Robert immediately. He banged the side of the Pip-Boy, and noticing no change, lowered his wrist.

"Now, to address the issue that Sans has left me. Frisk," He turned, facing the small child in the striped sweater, "Do you know any good places to keep some clothes?" He finished, presenting the stain on his three-piece suit.

Frisk was silent for a moment, before answering Robert, "I think we have one further ahead, would you like me to show you?" Frisk said, slowly making their way to the door.

Robert nodded, following Frisk. They exited, and as it was still semi-early in the morning, there weren't many Monsters roaming around. A few rabbits and a bear were the only Monsters in the street, and they paid them no heed. Walking through the streets, they eventually stopped in front of a shop called, 'Johnny's Apparel'.

"A monster, Johnny, runs this store. He's a friendly guy, he should be able to help you out." Frisk told Robert, pushing open the glass doors, causing a small bell to chime.

A small cat sat on a counter located at the far end of the room. Behind the counter was an anthropomorphic dog wearing a large, white furry coat, smoking a cigarette. Robert and Frisk walked up to the counter, and waited for a moment. Frisk motioned for Robert to talk, so talk he did.

"Hello there, I am Mr House. I was told that you sold clothes, and I was hoping that you could supply." Robert said, staring at the dog.

In response to this, the dog snuffed out his cigarette. He stood up, stalked in front of Robert, then began to size him up. Robert noticed, with disdain, that the dog was wearing baggy pants and leather boots. And a t-shirt with the name, 'Rammstein', on it. Robert doubted his ability to find a good suit for him. Ignoring his odd look, the Dog summoned several tape measures and went to work on finding out Robert's size. After 30 or so seconds, the dog let out a gruff bark and went through some curtains lining the back wall.

Robert and Frisk had some light banter while waiting for the Dog to return. The cat continued to sleep on the counter, much to Frisks delight. 20 minutes passed, and the curtains ruffled, revealing a midnight-black button-up suit, with four visible pockets seen at the front, with a dark red tie.

The cat at the counter awoke, and lazily looked towards the suit that the dog was carrying, before speaking, "Ah, the William Westmancott Ultimate Bespoke, a fine choice Mr Schmidt. As this is your first time, we'll drop the price by 20%. How about that?" The cat, with an old voice, offered.

"Thanks Johnny, I can pay for it." Frisk said with a smile, throwing a small bag of coins at the counter.

"Ah, Master Frisk. It's good to see you. And you're Mr House, I've heard quite a lot about you from Mr Schmidt here." Johnny turned their small body to face the large dog in the suit, who said nothing and gave Robert a bored glance.

"Well, it's been good. Perhaps I'll see you again. In the meantime, enjoy the suit. Hopefully we can do business again!" Johnny finished, before grooming himself.

Robert went to the changing room, changed into his new suit, and left the building with Frisk.

"That was quite the experience," Robert said, adjusting himself to the new feeling that the suit brought to him, "I think I may just go the Library today. Study up on your History, eh? I noticed the building when I was walking with Toriel." Robert said, absently checking the time on his Pip-Boy.

"Heh, sounds good. I'll go to Sans' house, and probably play some games with Papyrus," At the very mention of his name, Robert shivered, "See you soon!" Frisk shouted out, raising both thumbs in a friendly manner.

* * *

 **Authors Notes:** Hey guys! I'm so sorry for the long wait, assignments have been a _huge_ pain as of recent. And I've just been lazy in general. But I should be able to get back into the swing of things soon enough! This chapter felt a tab bit ramble-ly, so I apologise for that. The direction it was going it felt a little bit off, y'know? But fear not, exciting things _should_ happen next chapter, so stay put. And thank you to all of the people reviewing, it's such a nice feeling to see that people liked my story! Righto, it's 9 PM, the perfect time to upload this story. Have a good night everyone!


	7. Puzzles Galore

Chapter 7

Stacks of books surrounded a Human, wearing a small pair of reading glasses. He spent 13 seconds reading each page, absorbing the information at in-human paces. The book's varied in titles, some being about the History of monsters, some being about the structure of the Monster's society, and some being fables and stories. A small, cute bunny walked away from his mother, and headed towards Robert, who was nestled in a table in the far corner of the building.

The rabbit tugged on Robert's sleeve, causing him to look away from his book and address the Monster.

The bunny spoke first, "Are you a Human?" they asked, with a curious, awed tone.

"Why yes, I am," Robert said, removing his glasses, "Mr House, to be more specific." He finished, angling himself to face the child.

Noticing her son's absence, a nearby rabbit, walked over and tugged on her son's arm. She avoided eye contact with Robert, choosing to stare at the ground.

Robert payed her no heed and continued reading, absently looking out the window at times. Hours passed, and the list of books that Robert hadn't read yet were beginning to dwindle. Rubbing his eyes in frustration, Robert returned the book he was reading, ' _The Compounds of the Monster Soul_ ', and left the building, hoping to find Toriel. The midday sun shone through the thick clouds that peppered the sky, giving a cheery feel to Snowdin. Monster children ran through the snow, throwing snowballs at one another. A sudden ping alerted Robert, and he lifted his wrist to look at his Pip-Boy. The map, which displayed Sans' location, showed a blue skeleton-head, which was only a few metres from Robert. Looking ahead, Robert saw Papyrus and Toriel talking. Soon after, Sans came into the scene, from the shadows it seemed, with his hands in his pockets and a smile upon his face.

Straightening his tie, Robert made for them. It was Toriel who noticed him first, as shown by her waving. Papyrus looked up from the snow - skeleton? - statue, that he was making, and gave Robert a mischievous grin that seemed to imply something annoying. Sans was drinking more ketchup, avoiding eye contact.

"Ah, Robert! Come over here -" Toriel said warmly, before Papyrus suddenly yelled out.

"NYEH NYEH NYEH! Human, I've set up plenty of puzzles to bamboozle you!" Papyrus yelled out, striking a heroic pose. (If a Fanfiction-Author writes in the Papyrus font, and Fanfiction doesn't allow fonts, then does that Author even exist?)

"Oh boy, that sounds riveting," Robert said in a bored tone, although that didn't seem to bring any displeasure to Papyrus, "I'm sure I can handle whatever you have." Robert said, folding his hands behind his back.

Toriel chuckled, and resumed from where she left off, "I heard that you met Sans and Frisk before, how was that?" Toriel asked, smiling.

"I had a few drinks with Sans, Frisk seemed nice enough, and I got a new suit. So I'm happy." Robert said, giving a small, fake smile.

"Oh, that's good to hear. So I was thinking of heading to Waterfall, and you can meet Undyne." Before Toriel could continue on her offer, Papyrus interrupted her, yet again.

"If you wish to see Undyne, Human, you must first pass my elaborate puzzles! I'm sure they'll trick you!" Papyrus went on, an unseen breeze making his cape flow behind him. ('Miles Davis – So what'. Look . . . just listen to it. You won't regret it, trust me.)

"Do you mind if I add my special touch, Papy? I'm sure it'll make his head spin." Sans said, as his head literally began to spin.

" **GAAAH!** Sans, cease this at once! My magnificent monologue will not be interrupted by your terrible puns!"

Papyrus yelled, before pausing, scuffing his foot on the ground.

He gave off one last 'Nyeh Heh Heh', before running into the thick, foggy wind.

Robert straightened his tie, and turned to Sans, "Well buddy, I'll be headin' off now. Seeya Tori!" Sans said, before walking around a corner.

"Sans, if I may." Robert began saying, but stopped as he noticed that Sans had disappeared.

Looking down at his Pip-Boy, he noticed that the tracking chip was 3 km away from him now.

Toriel just smiled, before turning to Robert, "Well, let's start going, shall we?" Toriel said, chuckling to herself.

She turned, and was promptly hit in the face with a piece of paper. Toriel removed it, and read it, laughing when she finished. Toriel gave the note to Robert, who took out his glasses to read it, just for the effect.

It read; 'Human, you must go through my puzzles before you leave, and Toriel cannot help you! Also, Sans has changed some things, against my better judgement. But know this Human, you will be caught, and Undyne will use you to free our civilization! Somehow . . .'. Below the writing, it showed a poorly drawn picture of Robert in a cage, with an odd blue lady in armour laughing, and Papyrus surrounded by a crowd of Monsters in the background.

Placing his glasses back in his coat, he rubbed his eyes in frustration, "Alright, I'll see you soon Toriel. Give me a couple of minutes." Robert said with a tired tone, before he walked through the thick cloud of snow.

* * *

Robert, when he could finally see again, noticed a stone pedestal with a single sheet of paper on it. Robert also noticed, with disdain, that there were Papyrus-shaped footprints leading to a bush, where Robert could clearly see Papyrus trying to stifle his laughter. Sighing, Robert went to the pedestal and picked up the sheet. It was a cross-word puzzle, plain and simple. Well, more than simple, actually. Shaking his head, Robert grabbed a $42,000 silver fountain pen encrusted with diamonds and gold, and worked out the puzzle. In 2 seconds, Robert had solved the whole crossword puzzle. Grabbing the sheet in a semi-angry matter, Robert walked to Papyrus and handed him the sheet.

"Wow! You solved that in record time. When Frisk was given this sheet, he just walked right by it. Spectacular! I think Sans has set up several puzzles for you, I'm sure that they're quite difficult!" Papyrus shouted, with a large grin.

And just like that, Papyrus jumped through the air, bending reality as he did after his battle with Frisk. Robert, summing up Papyrus' odd behaviour to his magical abilities, walked down the path that Papyrus flew over. Robert walked several meters, before he stumbled over a branch. Looking down, Robert noticed a note, with words written in the Comic Sans font. 'Did I make you think that Sans wrote this letter? I've fooled you with my ingenious intelligence, yet again!', is what the letter read. Folding the note in half, Robert placed it in his coat, before he left.

The next puzzle was far more different than the last. Robert saw Sans, with his hands in his pockets and a smile upon his face, standing a few meters away from him. In-front of Sans were 3 plates of harmless-looking spaghetti.

"Hey, here's my puzzle. Don't tell Papy that I had to borrow some of his spaghetti for it." Sans said nonchalantly.

Robert shivered involuntarily, and stared at the plates, "What's the puzzle here?" Robert asked, confused.

"Oh, uh, puzzle. Hmm. What's my name?" Sans asked, after fidgeting around for a bit.

"Sans." Robert said, with a dead-pan face.

"Ding-Ding-Ding, we have a winner! Alright, go on ahead." Sans said, performing a small display of jazz-hands.

"What was the purpose of the spaghetti?" Robert asked, indicating to the three large servings of pasta.

In response, Sans just shrugged, before walking away. Breathing heavily, Robert continued onwards. As he did, he grabbed a small case of cigars from his coat, and lit one by igniting the end of his finger.

Scowling as he passed the plates of spaghetti, Robert went on, prepping himself for whatever puzzle Papyrus had in store next. He passed multiple snowmen as he walked through the snow, each with happy faces. One appeared to have a chunk missing from them, but yet the snowman maintained that cheery smile. He turned a corner, and immediately sighed in disbelief.

* * *

 **Authors Note** : Hey all! Yeah, I've been away for a while, and I have good reason! I was visiting my grandparents. This chapter is shorter than the others, just so I could revive some hope for this story. Sorry that we haven't met Undyne yet, maybe next chapter? Maybe . . .? So uh, goodbye, thanks for reading and review if you have the time! Also, if a Fanfiction-Author writes in the Papyrus font, and Fanfiction doesn't allow fonts, then does that Author even exist?


	8. Papyrus Battle!

Chapter 8

Scowling as he passed the plates of spaghetti, Robert went on, prepping himself for whatever puzzle Papyrus had in store next. He passed multiple snowmen as he walked through the snow, each with happy faces. One appeared to have a chunk missing from them, but yet the snowman maintained that cheery smile. He turned a corner, and immediately sighed in disbelief.

"Papyrus . . ." Robert said, doubting his sanity.

"Yes Human!?" Papyrus yelled from the great thing he had made.

"Papyrus . . ." Robert repeated.

Papyrus let off his signature 'Nyeh Heh Heh', from the mouth of the giant Papyrus statue he had made.

Rubbing his eyes in frustration, Robert asked, "What's the puzzle here? Do I even want to know?"

"I thought it would be obvious Human! You simply have to navigate this colossus till you get to the mouth! Then you have to eat some of my spaghetti!" Papyrus shouted, throwing up his arms.

Papyrus Nyeh-ed and then sat upon a snow throne, inside his statue's mouth. Muttering a curse under his breathe, Robert raised his index-finger and thumb, in the likeness of a gun, and started to charge up fire. He was aiming for the left leg, the weakest structural support, if his calculations were correct. Before Robert could fire, a gust of wind blew past him, and a sharp, needle-like bone pinned itself to a tree, near inches from his face. Looking to the origination of said weapon, all Robert could see was a retreating figure with a bright blue eye. Gulping, Robert lowered his finger, adjusted his tie, and went forth.

Robert, staring intently at his right hand, activated some cybernetic features that he had created. His wrist drew back, and out of the hole came a hook. Sinking the hook into the great snow structure, Robert began his ascent. Once he got to the knee of the Papyrus-Statue, the loud skeleton in the mouth gave him some useful advice.

"Ah Human, I see you're having some difficulty climbing into me!" Papyrus shouted out.

"No no, I'm quite alright thank you, you're help is not required." Robert replied with haste, hoping to block out Papyrus' voice.

"Fear not! For I have some useful guidance!"

"I'm sure I can accomplish this simple task on my own accord, Papyrus!"

"You can start by climbing . . . . . . . . . . . better!"

"Thank you Papyrus, that was appreciated."

Papyrus just smiled in response to this, before leaning back in his chair and laughing to himself. Robert clenched his only available hand for a moment, before he went on. Clawing his way up, past countless abbs, of which made Robert question the anatomy of a magical skeleton, he finally made it to the mouth, where Papyrus was snoozing. Clearing his throat, Papyrus shot up, with that same smile.

"Human, you've made it! Now it's time for the spaghetti!" Papyrus said gleefully, pulling a single plate of pasta from seemingly nowhere.

"Ah, but a moment Papyrus. I just have to quickly do some things here." Robert said, focusing on his Pip-Boy.

The plate that Papyrus was holding was shattered by a bullet that came from an unknown location.

"Good thing I brought extras!" Papyrus yelled, holding up more plates.

As soon as they were brought up to the light of the sun, bullets rang out and broke all the plates.

"What an unfortunate accident, let's just say that I ate them and be done with it, hmm?" Robert asked, unfazed.

"Shouldn't we be figuring out where those projectiles came from?" Papyrus asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I'm sure that those 9mm bullets just happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time. In any case, I'm going to say that I ate those and leave. Farwell, Papyrus." Robert said, before going down an emergency hatch that Papyrus somehow had time to make.

"Good thing I installed the long-range enhancements on the latest model of my soldiers" Robert said absently to himself as he went down the snow-ladders.

* * *

After having walked through the rest of the forest, thankfully with no Papyrus-esque interruptions, Robert found himself back at Snowdin, with Toriel happily chatting to a small white creature with horns. Obviously Toriel's son, Asriel, if Robert remembered correctly. Toriel looked up, hearing Robert, and was about to signal him over, before Papyrus graced the streets of Snowdin.

"Human! For your final test of wit, strength, and endurance, you must battle me! Let it be known, I will not go easy on you!" Papyrus shouted, letting the world know.

Toriel shrugged at Robert, and with a heavy sigh, Robert sauntered over.

"Alright, let's get this over with Papyrus." He said with a heavy voice.

"Prepare for the fight of your life! You must fight me if you wish to pass, for fighting me is the ultimate challenge! Nyeh Heh Heh!" Papyrus shouted, striking a heroic pose.

Robert, after sighing yet again, responded, "Very well. I assume that there are no restrictions as to what we can use?" he asked, preparing his Securitrons on his Pip-Boy.

"Of course! Just remember to have fun!" Papyrus said, throwing his arms up in the air.

Robert nodded his head, and took a calm pose, holding his hands behind his back in a neat manner. Papyrus Nyeh-ed, and then summoned a staff made of bone. He swung the staff, and a barrage of bones flew towards him. Robert scoffed as the bones flew to him, and Papyrus, noticing the Human making no attempt to dodge, slowed them down. Meanwhile, Robert was inputting a string of commands into his Pip-Boy for his Securitrons to follow. Missiles soared through the air, from behind a hill several meters away from Snowdin, at high-speeds. They struck the bones that Papyrus had created, leaving small smoke clouds behind.

"Wow! That was amazing! But I have a solution to your attacks!" Papyrus said, grinning.

Robert said nothing, and watched as Papyrus summoned one more bone. As soon as said bone was made, it was shot.

"My one solution didn't work!" Papyrus said, shocked.

"Alright Papyrus, my turn." Robert said calmly.

After waiting in anticipation for several seconds, Robert muttered a curse and looked at his Pip-Boy, hoping to find out why his Securitrons hadn't attacked. After seeing where Sans currently was, and after looking at the status board for his Securitrons, Robert knew what had happened. Reaching into his coat for Maria, since he Securitrons had been incapacitated by Sans, Robert aimed down the sights, hoping to hit Papyrus' staff of bone. Robert pulled the trigger, and expressed a silent moment of joy as his bullet hit its mark. While Papyrus had annoyed him, Robert didn't feel the need to harm him. And Sans seemed to be a creature of some potential power, power that he wouldn't like put against him.

Placing his gun back into his suit, Robert began to secretly charge up a fire attack, hiding his hands behind his back. Papyrus, assuming that he had an opening, threw a bone towards Robert that he had summoned. Robert, acting with intense speed, used his spell to redirect it. It ended up hitting the tree next to him. Papyrus summoned several more bones, all of which were redirected.

Robert, feeling slightly tired from the amount of Magic he was using, decided to tranquilize Papyrus. Flicking his right `wrist out, his derringer appeared. Sorting through multiple options via changing barrels, and cocking the hammer, Robert shot out the dart. As soon as the dart made contact with Papyrus' body, a powerful, magical force gripped Robert's neck, and began to strangle the air out of him. Out of the corner of his eye, Robert noticed Sans hiding behind some shrubbery, bearing a large, unsettling grin. Sans' eyes soon flicked to Papyrus, who was laying on the floor. The grip tightened around his throat, and Robert found himself staring at black splotches across his vision.

Only after a loud snore from Papyrus did Sans relinquish his hold on Robert. He fell to the ground gasping for air. Toriel ran to his side, and when Robert looked to where Sans was previously, he couldn't see any trace of him.

"Robert, are you alright!?" Toriel asked, very distressed.

After several moments of short, hurried breathes, Robert responded, "Thank you for your concern, but I'm quite alright. How's Papyrus doing?" Robert asked, looking to his slumbering body.

"He's fine, Robert. What happened to you? You started gasping when you shot Papyrus." Toriel asked with concern.

Robert was a man who played his cards right. Sans, in this case, was a useful card. Robert doesn't want to give up said card, "There must've been a fault in my neck. I've installed several cybernetic applications, and one of them must've locked up," Robert's eyes briefly met Sans', who was standing close to Papyrus' body, staring at him with the same unnerving smile, "I'll look into it soon." Robert finished, standing up.

"Well, please come by my house later for some tea, I should've stepped in." Toriel offered, looking slightly ashamed.

"That sounds just fine Toriel. I assume you live with Sans and Papyrus?" Robert said, indicating to Sans.

Toriel, in response, gave a small nod. Robert, after exchanging goodbyes, left towards the Bar.

* * *

The Strip of New Vegas, as powerful and mighty as it is, is nothing without the guidance of Mr. House. He'd only been gone for a couple of days, but it was obvious that the state of things were declining. There were more attacks in Casinos, the Securitrons were acting up sometimes, and there were even rumours of NCR forces starting to mass.

But at the current moment, the legendary Courier was currently in his suite in the Lucky 38. Mr. House had left several days ago, on a recon mission, with 2 Securitrons. He hadn't received a single message from him since. If he hadn't known how powerful Mr. House was, the Courier might've assumed the worst.

As the Courier was injecting himself with Jet, his personal Securitron, Yes Man, rolled up next to him, "Hi there! I've received word from one of the local Casino owners that a fight has broken down. And, I'm not asking you to go down there yourself and deal with the situation, but you told me to tell you whenever something bad was happening!" Yes Man milled about for a second longer, before rolling away to tidy up the Courier's suite.

Tossing the empty container of drugs away, The Courier went to go get his battle armour. Walking across the red-velvet carpet, pass the roaring fireplace and multiple mounted mutant heads, he stopped in-front of a bookshelf. Pulling a sequence of books down, a loud * _click_ * sound could be heard, and the bookshelf swung open. Inside was the Courier's array of weapons and armour. Grabbing his Elite Riot Gear, which he obtained from the Divide, he donned his mask and duster. Reaching to his left, the Courier opened the display case which held his Anti-Material Rifle.

Walking into the elevator, he gave a small nod to Victor, who then sent the Courier down to the Lobby. Walking out into the Strip, the Courier was met with the usual sights of New Vegas. Drunk people stumbled from place to place, prostitutes from Gomorrah danced in-front of patrons, that one comedian blurted out jokes, the usual. Tuning his radio, the Courier smiled as Dean Martin sung 'Ain't that a kick in the Head'. The Courier walked down the Strip, greeting those that waved to him, before he arrived at The Tops.

Usually, one of the Chairmen would greet him, but they appeared to be preoccupied with a man holding a gun up to the head of a girl named Sally, who dealt chips to gamblers. Tapping a button at the side of his mask, the Riot Helmet's visors emitted a red glow. Aiming down the sights of the rifle, the Courier lined up the shot, before pulling the tripper. The bullet sailed through the air, before hitting its target. The man's body, which lacked a head, slumped to the ground. Lowering his gun, the Courier walked out of the Casino, without waiting to receive praise.

A sudden vibration against his wrist caused the Courier to look at his Pip-Boy. A message in strange symbols greeted him. Looking for a second longer, the Courier assumed it was a simple fault in the Pip-Boy, and decided to get Yes Man to look at it later. Slowly trailing back to his Suite, he saw a Securitron banging into a wall repeatedly. Such a sad scene.

* * *

Robert turned around, and once he saw that Toriel had turned her back and was facing Asriel, he changed directions. Monsters around avoided eye contact, and tried to stay as far away from him as they could. Robert needed to find his Securitrons. If from what he heard from Papyrus was true, then quite a lot of Monsters would want to kill him. Robert would need some protection, and his Securitrons were the ones to supply said protection. So, with a sigh, Robert looked to his map, hoping to see some sort of indication as to where his Securitrons were.

Robert then began to walk through a forest that led off from Snowdin, towards where his damaged Securitrons should be. Eventually, he found them. One of them appeared to be in a semi-operational state, it was just lying dormant with a static display. The other one, however, was worse for wear. A large hole went straight through their body, with blue flames surrounding the wreck.

" **A storm's coming Robert**. **And you'll need to be ready**." An awfully familiar voice casually stated from behind him.

Ignoring Sans' cryptic message, Robert turned around and spoke to him, "Sans, I'm sure you're quite aware that I could've alerted Toriel to your actions against me."

Sans simply stared back, smiling.

Robert, ignoring him, looked back to his Securitrons, before throwing his hands up in the air, "Sans, you very clearly could've used whatever power you have to stop me from using my Securitrons, without having to destroy them." Robert said, annoyed.

"Well, I'm sure a certain friend of mine will appreciate it sometime in the future." Sans said, giving off a sly wink.

Robert heard a pop sound from behind him, similar to a suction cup being pulled off from something, letting him know that Sans was gone, "That insufferable little -"

"Heya, I'm back" Sans, who was now holding a bag of chips.

"How exactly do you teleport, Sans? I'd imagine that displacing yourself takes up considerable energy, and requires a certain level of concentration, but for you to be able to do so at will, is confusing, to say the least." Robert asked, whilst salvaging pieces from his Securitrons.

"It's mostly about the power of the soul, House." Came Sans, with a short response.

"Care to elaborate?" Robert asked, turning to look at Sans for just a moment.

"Nope"

"Brilliant."

Robert fiddled around with his Securitrons for a moment longer, before the previously disabled robot arose. The other one, beyond repair, would be left behind. Robert activated a few things on his Pip-Boy, and the Securitron's face-monitor displayed the recent footage. It first started off with the two robots rolling up the mountain, taking position, and arming their weapons. Sans suddenly appeared, his eyes a mix of blue and yellow, and obliterated them with a skeleton-like blaster. The footage ended, showing Sans crushing the monitor with his foot.

Robert was silent for a moment, watching the static on the screen dance, before talking to Sans, "What exactly was that, Sans?"

"What, haven't you seen a Gaster Blaster before? C'mon pal, I thought you were a smart one." Sans said, winking.

"I'll show you later" Sans said, before blinking away.

Robert adjusted his tie, before staring at the ground where Sans once stood with resent. He had alluded too many things, too many times.

* * *

"What was that Papyrus!?" Undyne shouted, slamming her fist down upon the armrest of her stone chair.

"Please Undyne. Frisk was a good human, he can be a good human too! I know that!" Papyrus told Undyne, trying to convince her.

"Papyrus, this guy almost killed my best guards! He's a menace, and this is just the chance I was looking for! We'll be able to escape, with Asgore, Toriel, and the others!" Undyne shouted, grabbing her armour.

"Don't do this Undyne!"

"Get out of my way, Paps!" Undyne said in return, pushing through him, "This little punk will get what he's asked for." Undyne concluded, putting on her helmet, before jumping over the balcony of the Castle.

* * *

 **Author's Notes:** Heya pals! I'm back, sorry for being so late. I hope this chapter's good, and that you enjoyed reading it! I've introduced Undyne, probably not what you were expecting, but she'll play a larger part next chapter! Well, bye! See you in like . . . 3 months or something!


	9. Undyne Arrives!

Chapter 9

Robert, after scrapping his destroyed Securitron with his tools, slowly made his way back to Snowdin. The day was drifting into the afternoon, and there were less monsters roaming outside then before. Robert, seeing how Grillby's Bar was full of Monsters chatting, entered. An immediate wave of silence fell over the crowd. Patrons all turned to look at him for just a moment, before making an obvious act to look away.

"Pleasure to see you again Grillby. I'll have a Brown Brother's Wine please." Robert said, placing 5 coins onto the table.

Grillby, in return, simply nodded to him, and went to the back room to grab a bottle. Monsters next to Robert moved from their seats, leaving a gap between him and the others. Robert, in return, scoffed, before sipping his wine whilst checking for alerts on his Pip-Boy. Oddly enough, he couldn't see any new notifications of a sort. Robert came to the conclusion that a higher connection would be needed to connect to his servers back in the Lucky 38. Which means that none of his previous messages had gotten through to the Courier.

A sudden burst at the door was heard, before Robert heard a voice speak to him.

"You damn Human! I'll kill you!" An unknown female dressed up in a large suit of armour shouted, before throwing a spear towards Robert, which missed him by a hair-breadth.

"You bloody Monsters and all your fighting. I don't have time for this nonsense." Robert spat out, annoyed, before activating a button on his watch, turning him invisible.

The watch was a device with an integrated Stealth Boy. Robert worked on it as a side project to be used in the up-coming war, before realizing that even this device would be futile in its attempt to go against certain atomic immolation.

"Ngah! Where'd that Human go!?" The Head of the Royal Guard shouted, flipping a table in her anger.

She spent several more minutes screaming and thrashing about in a desperate attempt to find Robert, before someone skidding to a stop in-front of the door arrived.

"Undyne, please stop! Let him live!" Papyrus plead, trying to defend Robert's case once more.

"Papyrus, you know I ca -" Undyne began to say, before a bullet pinged off her helmet, "WHERE ARE YOU, YOU BASTARD!?"

"Come now, that's a tab bit on the brutish side, no?" Robert said mockingly, with Maria in his hand, a smug look adorning his face.

Undyne let out one of her signature screams of fury, before a stream of spears were thrown Robert's way. A momentary look of fear crossed Robert's face, but as soon as it appeared, left. Once again activating his Stealth Boy, Robert made a hasty retreat. It was far too trivial for him. Running through the still open door, he hurried past several monsters who had gathered to see the fight. Cursing as his Stealth Boy de-activated, Robert contacted his Securitron. Immediately afterwards, a barrage of rockets flew to Undyne, who had ran out after Robert with incredible speed. They all blew her to the side, knocking off her helmet. Robert rounded a corner as she was downed, and made his way past all of the buildings.

Robert eventually made it to Toriel's house, where he sought refuge, slamming his fist on the door many times. Silence was the only thing that greeted Robert. Undyne was sprinting towards Robert, intent on getting her revenge. Sans suddenly appeared behind Robert, gripping his arm, before teleporting away, with Robert. It felt as if he was being dragged through a heavy tide of water, being thrown to and fro. Robert opened his eyes, and looked out across a void of sorts. There he saw, in the distance, a hunched over figure. After a few more seconds traveling through the Void, Robert came to a sudden stop.

He immediately vomited, experiencing the effects from teleportation. Robert looked around, he appeared to be in a small lab. Sans was over at a desk, with blueprints with some unknown language written on them, rolling them up.

"You should be safe here, for now at least." Sans said, with an even tone.

"Bloody hell Sans, would you mind explaining what I saw?" Robert said in response, stepping over the mess he had made.

Sans ignored Robert, opting to go underneath a grey tarp. A blue aura surrounded some tools that were strewn about on the desk, and they floated over to Sans. After a minute or so, filled with the sounds of welding and hammers banging, Sans came back out.

"I just teleported you, because of Undyne. You're welcome." Sans said with a smug grin, resting his arm on thin air, thanks to his magic.

Robert adjusted his tie, before looking out across the room, "Sans, where are we?" he asked, confused.

"We're behind Toriel's house. This is a lab that I use to do science stuff in. I also use it to collect socks to throw into Papy's room." Sans said, chuckling.

Robert looked around the small, confined room. It looked rather professional. Blue walls, tiled floors, some machine covered by a grey tarp in the corner.

"Who is this Undyne character, and why is she trying to kill me?"

"Oh, she's the head of the Royal Guard, or somethin' like that. You attacked some of her guards, the dogs back at Grillby's, and now she's annoyed. As in, 'I'm going to kill you', annoyed. Heh." Sans explained, before a sudden fish-lady burst through the roof of the Lab.

"HUUUUUMAN!" She screeched, spears in hand.

"Oh for the love of -" Robert began to say, before he started running.

Robert rolled up his sleeve, in an attempt not to damage his suit, before he activated a cybernetic-application of his. Robert's index finger opened, and with a simple thought, a small, unassuming pellet through forth. Once said pellet hit the ground, it released a form of gas. Undyne fell to the ground, the effects of the gas immediately taking effect. Desperate for air, she unlatched her helmet, casting it aside. Just barely, she noticed the thin outline of a retreating figure. She threw one last pitiful spear towards him, and watched as it sailed through the air, graceful even while she was down.

* * *

 **Authors Notes:** So uh, when I said three months, it was just me over-exaggerating. So, here it is. I realized that people were saddened by the three month wait thing (Which was a slight reference to Mr. Poopy-Butthole from Rick and Morty, the last episode of Season 3), so I quickly mashed this together. Also, what with Robert's watch, think of the Enthusiasts Time Piece from TF2, because I'm un-original. Except without the Pacman design. It's the shortest chapter, but that's just to let people know that there's no three month wait. Also, the end of the School year is upon us, so I'll be able to spend some more time working on this! Also, we're one review away from that magical number 50! I just want to say that I appreciate the continued approval of everyone who's read this. And before I forget, with that whole thing about the Colour TV and the small Pip-Boy, I've decided to . . . swipe that under the rug. I haven't played Fallout 1 or 2, and I've barely gotten through 3, so my knowledge is mostly restricted to New Vegas and 4. Sorry to anyone that I may have offended with my lack of knowledge there. Have a good one!


	10. Waterfall

Chapter 10

Undyne threw one last pitiful spear towards him, and watched as it sailed through the air, graceful even while she was down. A sickening crunch sounded off, and Undyne could see Robert's figure collapse to the ground, her blue spear shimmering out of existence. A loud shout, coming from Robert, was heard, giving Undyne a small moment of satisfaction before she fell to the smoke's effects.

Robert, try as he might, could only move forwards by dragging himself across the ground with his elbows. He was losing a lot of blood, although such things didn't affect a man like himself in a major way, it would be better if he had it. Robert continued to drag himself forwards, before coming to the long strip of snow that led to where he had fought Papyrus. Up ahead, Papyrus was waiting, before he saw Robert's crumpled figure. The tall skeleton ran to Robert, asking him if he was okay, in a worried tone.

"Human, we must get Toriel! She can help you!" Papyrus said, reaching for his phone.

"That would be best" Robert replied, attempting to stem the flow of blood from his leg with his hands.

After a short call, which Robert wasn't able to hear, Toriel came running in. Without asking any questions, or making any real signs of distress, she cast a healing spell. Her hands started to glow a light green colour, before she placed her hands over Robert's wound. After thirty or so seconds, she removed them. What was once a gaping wound, was now just a patch of skin missing hair.

"Thank you Toriel. Now, I must continue." Robert said, slowly rising, his leg still rather sore.

"Robert, wouldn't you prefer to remain here for some time, to recuperate?" Toriel asked, concerned.

"No, it's fine. Undyne should be incapacitated long enough for me to get out of her radar. And, I heal faster than most." Said Robert, stretching his back.

"Well, if you're really ok with this, then I can't stop you. Good luck, Robert, don't get hurt." Toriel said affectionately, gazing at Robert as a mother would to a child.

Robert gave his thanks, before making to leave.

"Human, wait! You almost forgot your emergency spaghetti!" Papyrus yelled out to Robert's retreating figure.

Silence was all that Papyrus was given in return.

* * *

It had gotten warmer, the further Robert went in. He passed 3 waterfalls, flowing into a river to the left of him. Up ahead, a small, orange monster with a striped sweater was playing with Toriel's children, Asriel and Frisk.

"Hey Mr. House!" Frisk yelled out, waving at Robert.

Robert, putting on a thin smile, waved back, "Hello Frisk, Asriel, and friend."

"This is Monster Kid!" Frisk said in return, pointing to the Monster that lacked arms.

Monster Kid yelled out 'Yo', to Robert.

"Well, it's been fun, but I have to leave now. Farewell." Robert said, walking past the three Monsters.

As he passed, he noticed Asriel looking away, towards a flower with yellow petals, in fear. It didn't look out of the ordinary, Robert noted. Walking by, Robert came to a small stand, like the one he saw when he first exited the Ruins. It appeared to be empty inside. Sans suddenly appeared, just a moment after Robert blinked.

"Hey bud," Sans began, before noticing the annoyed look on Robert's face, "What, a guy can't have two jobs?" Sans said, before winking.

Robert just scowled, before continuing on. Walking along a stone pathway, past a sign with a chest next to it, that Robert couldn't be bothered to read, he came upon a large gap in the pathway, where a waterfall flowed through. Cursing his luck, Robert lifted his pants-legs before continuing on. He made it about halfway through before hurried footsteps were heard behind him. A small force barrelled into Robert, knocking him to the floor.

"Sorry yo! Frisk is It!" Monster Kid shouted, before running over Robert, his foot un-intentionally slamming Robert's face into the water.

Soon after, Frisk ran by, paying Robert no heed.

"Insufferable little Monsters." Robert said under his breath, wiping some garbage in the waterfall off his face and legs.

Continuing on in damp clothes, Robert came upon a small flower shop. "Asgore's Topiary" painted in pink letters, "Feel free to take Any". Robert walked through, admiring the magnificent displays of art. Giant statues, made of lush, green leaves adorned the area. Robert came to a stop at an un-holy abomination. A statue of Papyrus, lying on his side with a rose in his mouth, wearing sunglasses. It easily dwarfed all other statues, and Robert was confused as to how he had missed it in the first place. Lighting the tip of his finger, Robert slowly made to burn down the whole thing. But before he could, much to his disappointment, a voice chimed in.

"HUMAN! FIGHT ME!" Undyne said, recovering from the pellet Robert had used earlier.

Robert immediately redirected his finger, and shot a stream of fire towards Undyne. She narrowly dodged it, the fire mere inches from her head. Undyne didn't have long to recuperate, for another stream of fire flew towards her. She wasn't as lucky as last time, as the fire managed to ignite her hair. Undyne threw her helmet at him in rage, and was mildly surprised to see that he had caught it, considering the speed at which it had travelled through the air. Ignoring that feat of speed, she prepared her spears.

Robert, meanwhile, was about to activate his trump card. As soon as he saw Undyne ready her spears, Robert's arm contorted, revealing a gun, with a light blue shade slowing growing in intensity in the barrel. Robert quickly manoeuvred around the spears, and took aim. The mass of energy shot out, warming Robert's body. It blasted into Undyne, shattering her armour. He slowly sauntered up to her collapsed body, and charged up his gun-arm intimidatingly. Undyne tried to scamper back, to escape the onslaught of pain she was about to receive.

Robert stared at her with cold, un-feeling eyes. As Undyne looked back, she thought that a glimmer of red shone through, but that thought was swept away at the sign of him lifting his arm. By now, the light was a bright-neon blue.

 ***THUNK***

"Fabulous acting darling, you really outdid yourself! I thought I saw real terror there for a moment." Mettaton said, in his default chassis.

Undyne breathed heavily for a few moments, before the fins at the sides of her head perked up, "Y-yeah. . . Look, let's just, get back to Alphys' Undyne said, breathing heavily, before throwing on a brave face.

Undyne stared at the unconscious body, belonging to a man that was about to kill her. This Human was unlike anything she'd dealt with before. And it scared her.

* * *

 **Author's Notes:** And we're done. I'm really sorry about the whole month-long wait. I have no other excuse, aside from my laziness. So, I apologise. Also, take a look at those reviews! 60! 60 whole reviews! It means a lot, thanks everyone that's enjoyed the story! Have a very Merry Christmas!


	11. Alphys' Lab

Chapter 11

"Alphys, this guy tried to kill me!" Undyne shouted at her companion, Alphys.

"Oh hush now Darling, I'm sure it was nothing." Mettaton said, not turning from his mirror to address Undyne.

"I don't need your input Mettaton! Now, let's just kill him while he's unconsc –" Undyne began demanding, before turning to the groaning body tied up with rope.

A blue, shimmering spear fluttered forth into Undyne's hands, which she directed towards the awakening Human. Mettaton turned his chassis to face Robert as well, not making any other move to indicate aggression.

"Blast it all, what happened?" Murmured Robert, making an attempt to raise his hands to soothe his aching head, finding that he couldn't, "Why can't I move?" He pondered aloud.

Robert's eyes shot open with a start, surveying the room around him. The brute of a lady that attacked him earlier was standing in front of him, the tip of her spear near inches from his throat. A small, yellow, dinosaur-like creature in a lab coat stood behind Undyne, peeking out from her back in a nervous manner. A large, square, silver robot rolled around on a single wheel, at the far side of the room. Said room appeared to be a lab of a sorts, with flashing lights, conveyor belts, and monitors dotted everywhere.

"Now, I wouldn't mind it if you moved that barbaric weapon of yours away from me." Robert said, staring into Undyne's eyes, challenging her in some way.

Undyne simply growled, before moving it closer, letting the tip just barely scrape his neck.

"U-Undyne, w-we don't h-have to do that!" Stuttered Alphys, tugging on the hem of Undyne's black tank top.

Undyne turned to face Alphys, before grunting and dissipating her spear.

Robert nodded towards Alphys in a sign of gratitude, before levelling his cold gaze to Undyne. Undyne did the same in return.

"Now, we're going to ask you some questions, and you're going to answer them, punk!" Undyne stated, glaring at Robert as she backed up.

"If it'll get me out of these restraints any faster, then I will comply for now." Robert said, forging a defeated tone to hide his true intentions.

"Why are you in the Underground!?" Undyne barked, sitting on a chair backwards.

"I'm here to expand my Empire." Robert stated, thinking of the quickest and quietest way out of the lab.

"What kind of Empire?" Undyne asked.

"An Empire built on expanding the best of civilization, through technological and profitable sources. I plan on eventually leaving this rotten husk of a planet, with a colony ship of my own design." Robert answered.

Undyne stared at Robert once more, deciding whether or not he was telling the truth. As she was about to ask another question, Alphys burst in with excitement.

"What kind of technology!?" Alphys gushed.

"I've developed an advanced laser security perimeter, robots of mass destruction, built for protecting my citizens, genetic manipulation, body reconstruction, cybernetics, to name a few." Robert said, recalling some of the larger advancements he's made.

As he spoke, Alphys' smile only got bigger and bigger, "It's like every sci-fi anime rolled up into one!" She shouted, throwing her hands in the air.

While Robert didn't know what an 'anime' was, he was certainly happy to find another who enjoyed his passion with technology, "I have one such example available. I could show you, if you could . . ." Robert said, gesturing to his binds.

Alphys, without thinking, used one of her small claws to cut the rope ensnaring Robert. Robert, after rubbing his wrists, offered his hand to Alphys. She immediately took it, shaking it gratefully.

"Alphys, what've you done!?" Undyne exclaimed, summoning two spears.

Fed up with Undyne's ceaseless attempts on his life, Robert acted with haste. Flicking his right wrist out, he shot a sleeping dart from his Derringer, directly at Undyne. She fell to the floor with a slump.

"Now that that bother is out of the way, I can show you my Securitrons." Robert said coldly, standing over Undyne's body.

"U-Undyne!" Alphys screamed out, sliding onto the floor to cradle her companion's head, "What did you do to her!?"

"Oh come now, I don't hold THAT much resentment over Undyne. She's just asleep." Robert explained, focusing on the monitor displaying several different CCTV feeds.

Robert, after searching Alphys' computer for a little bit, found what he was looking for. Taking a cord from his Pip-Boy, Robert ran it into a jack. A light green feed appeared, displaying what looked to be snow. Tapping in a few commands, the snow dissipated, revealing the back of Grillby's Bar. Robert commanded his Securitron to make its way to his current location. Robert turned around, and came face to face with the square robot he saw earlier.

"Hello Darling, I have to say, you have SUCH a magnificent suit. Who made it?" The robot spoke.

Robert looked over the robot. Its name was Mettaton, according to the faded words he saw across its chassis. It had a red question mark across its face, surrounded by yellow, square blocks.

"A dog in Snowdin made it, from my knowledge." Robert replied, hoping to test how advanced it was, in the terms of its artificial intelligence.

"Oh, Johnny's Apparel! Such a lovely place." Mettaton went on.

When Robert noticed it began talking about itself, he turned, and went to face Alphys, "Well, my creation should be here any second. How's Undyne doing?" Robert asked, hands folded behind his back.

"Sh-She's doing f-fine, thanks. S-Sorry about her, she c-can sometimes get a little bit r-rowdy." Alphys said.

She was sitting on a couch, opposite to a TV covering a very large, Mettaton sized hole. Undyne's head was resting on her lap. Robert raised an eyebrow at this, and said nothing more.

"Well, in the meantime, do you mind if I look through your computer? To see what the Underground's accomplished on the technological side of things." Robert asked.

"S-Sure! Maybe we can ex-exchange information in the near f-future?" Alphys asked.

Robert nodded, before turning back. It should be quite interesting to research more into the Monster's.

(LINE BREAK)

 **Authors Notes:** Sorry for the long wait, and the disappointingly short chapter. Happy New Year everyone! 2017 was great, let's hope this year is too! Sorry if the interrogation scene didn't live up to your expectations, Underfan1. Thanks Caddy, and everyone else! God, writing this story is so much fun! There'll be a new chapter soon, hopefully! Farewell!


	12. True Lab and Mishaps

Chapter 12

Robert sat, with a straight back, browsing through Alphy's computer. Alphys, along with the sleeping form of Undyne and the ever so egotistical Mettaton, were watching something she called 'Anime'. Figures raced against the screen, attacking each other with laser-shooting swords. Robert then refocused his attention on the screen in front of him, displaying information of the Underground's advancements thus far. Their largest technological feat, was a giant geothermal power plant. Huge, clunky, and powerful, it supplied 'magical energy' to all of the Underground. There was very little text regarding how it turns heat into magical energy, or how it was built. The only piece of information regarding its construction was of who designed it, a man going by the name of W.D Gaster. He'd have to ask Alphys about it later.

Other machines included the phone, a device which he saw Frisk use earlier in Snowdin. It had some rather interesting features, aside from being capable of messaging everyone in the Underground, including the ability to transform into different objects. A jetpack and a hover-board, to name a few. Their computers were also sleeker, with an easier interface, and a wider array of features and uses.

A file called 'DETERMINATION' was littered with words crossed out, the word '[Redacted]' and '[Data Expunged]'. It had a photo of everyone who worked on the project. There were three figures. One of them was tall, thin, and spindly, with long skeletal arms. Another was short, bearing the same skeletal traits as of the person next to him. The final person was of medium height, hunched over. The image was black and white and covered in water stains. All of the faces were blacked out, not allowing for any major distinguishing traits to be shown. Committing the photo to memory, Robert browsed through some more files. He noticed a very distinguishing trend with all the machinery and technology. It all seemed far more advanced than anything he had back in New Vegas. Even their conveyor belts seemed more advanced than the ones in his factories. Furrowing his eyebrows, Robert exited the file. A large picture of a cat-human hybrid decorated the background of Alphy's desktop.

Standing up from the chair, Robert turned to face Alphys. She had drifted off with the show still playing in the background, and the robot Mettaton appeared to be in an inactive state. Undyne, too, still slept, a calm expression adorning her usually rage-filled face. Robert walked to the couch, just to gain a better bearing of his surroundings. He stopped, after noticing an escalator of sorts, traveling down. Robert kept on walking, and noticed an escalator traveling the opposite way. Stepping onto the escalator, he was quickly transported to another level of the lab. Immediately, he noticed an amount of books stacked up on multiple worn, old looking bookshelves. A large silver machine with green matter sticking out the top of it churned out a pink-goo like substance. Several tools hung up above said machine, looking like they'd never been used before. Just past the machine was a desk, with a large poster of the same human-cat hybrid, this time displaying a peace symbol with her fingers.

On the desk was a chainsaw, an odd gun contraption, and a large piece of paper. The paper illustrated a procedure, involving hearts. The hearts shown beared a resemblance to Robert's soul. It showed a small, up-side down heart with an arrow directed to one of a larger size, this time the right way up. Another arrow showed the larger heart being inputted into a body. Many notes were written on this sheet, describing some sort of soul absorption. Robert decided that he'd have to analyse it further at a later date.

Walking on, Robert noticed a wardrobe with the door slightly ajar. From this angle, he could see a many lab coats, and a single black dress with small white dots. Next up was a small desk with a lamp on it, nothing special. But just past that, Robert looked on with confusion, was a floating cube that seemed _wrong_ in some way. Enhancing his vision, Robert noticed not a single un-straight surface. It was geometrically perfect. Staving off the multitude of questions that this brought up, Robert continued to explore. Another poster was hung up, with a large love heart on it.

Finally making it to the end of the 2nd level, Robert saw a poster close to falling off the wall. It had a picture of Mettaton on it, holding a microphone in front of a large crowd of Monsters. The poster itself was old, if the date was anything to go by. Done with investigating everything, Robert went back to the bookshelves to learn some more. All of the books were covered in a large layer of dust, looking like they hadn't been touched in decades. Robert grabbed a small collection, and went down the escalator to the couch, before finding himself a comfortable spot without waking the others. Grabbing his reading glasses, which Robert only used for decoration, he started to consume more information.

* * *

It had been several hours, and Robert was close to finishing the last book. He'd learnt a little bit more about the mysterious Gaster character, but his face still remained a mystery. He was a Royal Scientist at one point, and had created, or reverse-engineered, many useful contraptions for the Underground. Earlier models of computers and mobile phones had been developed by him, and many other electrical components were largely made with his help. His current status was unknown, which was surprising. If from what he read was correct, then this man was many centuries old, if his involvement in the Human-Monster War was anything to go by. Then again, Toriel was around the same age as this man, albeit younger, and she was around the same mental state as one in their 40's.

Gaster was described as being a very calculating man, lacking a lot of emotions. He had very little friends, aside from close lab assistants. Gaster's other side projects, apparently, caused a lot of conflict with Toriel, who was Queen at the time. These conflicts didn't go into a lot of detail, it just seems that Toriel disagreed with Gaster's way of conducting experiments. Closing the thin book, Robert directed his head towards his Pip-Boy. It was nearing 6 in the morning, so he decided to take a rest for several hours. Not because he needed to sleep, but rather because of him not having anything else to do or investigate.

Closing his eyes, Robert slowly started to drift off. But as he was about to enter the realm of sleep, a small, mechanical whir startled him. Robert's eyes scanned the room, seeing nothing out of place. Except for a slight opening in the wall he didn't notice before. Standing up, Robert approached it, and slid his fingers into the opening. Sliding open the hidden door, he saw a compact room with 1 lever. Having nothing else to do, Robert walked into the room, and pulled it down with little effort. Immediately, the hidden door shut with a slam, and a few small lights lit up.

The compact room was in actual fact an elevator, and it began to travel down in a sporadic way. Robert had to hold onto a rail that had popped out of the elevator when it began its descent. After a minute of lurching and tumbling, a ping was heard, and the elevator abruptly stopped. The doors slid open, revealing a decrepit hallway, with paint chipping away, stains on the floor, and foliage growing throughout. Walking down said hallway, Robert noticed terminals embedded into the walls. They appeared to contain entries, written by an unknown person. Walking down the hallway, Robert went through and read all of them.

They covered things about Monster Souls, how they shatter almost instantaneously upon death, and how removing them from a host Monster would kill them. Whoever wrote this terminal entry seemed to think that a form of energy, a will to live, would help these souls persist after death. They dubbed this energy 'DETERMINATION', a word that Robert had been hearing about more and more often as he traveled through Alphys' lab. Taking a left, Robert came upon a sort of reception room. There were dead plants in flower pots and a vending machine with chips that were most likely out of date. A large door with four glowing, circular lights, resided in-front of him. Deciding to go through that door later, Robert went down another hallway, on the left side of the room.

There was another terminal entry, about how Asgore had asked for bodies of 'fallen down' monsters. The writer of the entry knew that there wouldn't be much time before their souls expired, in their comatose state. They assumed that injecting 'DETERMINATION' into the souls of these creatures would result in them persisting after death. In the next room, multiple gurneys and rusty sinks resided. The next room had a machine with a red, glowing light. It appeared to be on.

Going back into the Reception, Robert instead decided to go down the right hallway, and found yet another row of terminals. The user was having difficulty making the Monsters awake from their comas, and decided to continue injecting them with 'DETERMINATION'. The last one cryptically stated that one of the Monster's awoke. Continuing on, the next room held many beds, and some more dead plants. Another terminal stated that all of the Monster's were up and about, walking and talking as if nothing had happened. But based on of the current conditions of this lab, Robert doubted that it all went according to plan.

Robert pushed on, going through an entryway with loose cables. The terminal in this hallway regarded the experiment as a failure, with a happy ending. They informed the families of the subjects that they'd be returning home soon, and they sent the soul that Asgore had collected back, no longer needing it. Just next to the previous terminal was another one, with the word 'no' written many times. Continuing down the hallway, Robert saw it fork off, leading to a bathtub. It was covered in a thin, white goo.

The next room held a truly massive machine. It resembled the skull of some unknown creature, with large tubes sticking out of it. It was suspended over a massive pit of darkness, with rails along the side to prevent anyone from injuring themselves. A small sign bolted into the railings said 'DT Extractor'. Many computers and monitors surrounded this contraption, all inactive. A sudden chill seeped in through the room, putting Robert on edge. He flicked out his derringer, just in case the situation called for it. Robert ran a quick check of the room, scanning it in different wavelengths, not being able to identify anyone or anything that could bring on such a feeling of un-easiness.

A sudden blackness obscured Robert's vision, and no matter what way he looked, the blackness remained. After 30 seconds or so of blind-ness, Robert regained his vision. He was still in the same room, but it had been restored completely. There were no longer any cracks in the walls, no more vines, and the floors looked pristine. The DT Extractor hummed quietly, and all of the equipment were online and functioning, displaying information that Robert couldn't identify. Looking down at his hands, Robert began to worry, noticing the ethereal tone it had taken.

* * *

Robert's musing were interrupted when a sliding door opened with a hiss, revealing a tall, skeletal figure in a lab coat. It looked just like the creature he had encountered when he blacked out in the ruins, but it lacked the fissures in its face, and there wasn't any wispy smoke billowing out of the sides of his eye sockets. This must be WD Gaster, the previous Royal Scientist. He didn't look awfully happy, as he stormed directly through Robert, coffee in hand, with a scowl on his face.

". . . I'm just saying, that thing's dangerous." An oddly familiar voice stated.

Robert turned to look at the figure that had just entered the room, and let out a small hum of surprise. It was Sans, in a lab coat, with a black tie and a small pair of glasses.

"Sans, I've ran the tests, I know exactly how this procedure will go. Now, why don't you make yourself useful and set up Phase 1." Gaster demanded, in a cool, deep voice that projected power.

"If you say so, Doc." Sans said in an annoyed tone, before sitting down on a swivel chair.

Tapping away at a keyboard, the eyes of the machine lit up with a bright white glow. The tubes that connected it to some sort of power source in the ceiling began to vibrate.

"Ah, it's running excellently so far. Sans, initiate phase 2." Gaster said, with a smile that seemed to bridge the width of his face.

A small hatch opened on the top of the skull, and a tube with a single dark red soul descended into the contraption. After a few seconds, the hatch sealed, and the eyes changed from their piercing white glow, to the left eye being blue, and the right one being yellow. A minute passed, with Gaster waiting anxiously and Sans typing away at a keyboard, before a platform extended from the maw of the skull. Gaster stood on it, with his hands folded behind his back. The platform retracted with Gaster still standing on it, before it stopped inside the Extractor.

"And now Sans, phase 3!" Gaster shouted, his purple eyes burning with excitement.

"Are you sure about this Gaster? We don't know what could happen!" Sans exclaimed over the whirring of the machine, concerned.

"Now dammit!" Gaster demanded in an annoyed tone.

Robert watched this unfold with calculating eyes. The Extractor was utilising a Human Soul to power it, as Monster Souls were far too weak to persist after death. The left eye strangely resembled Sans', when Robert shot Papyrus. Robert's thoughts were interrupted, as he saw phase 3 being enacted.

A beam of light shot down, directly into Gaster. There was a sudden change with Gaster, as his eyes started to let off a purple glow. Gaster was still smiling, happy with the experiment. Suddenly, alarms started to blare off. All the monitors in the room showed a displayed a red triangle with an exclamation mark in the middle, with the words 'DT Overload' written underneath them in black, bold writing.

"Sans, shut it dow - Gah!" Gaster ordered, before sptting out a black substance.

"I – I can't! It won't let me!" Sans called out in distress, not looking up from his monitor, with an error message.

Gaster shouted out once more, staring at his dissolving hand. This dissolving effect spread from his hand, to his arm, soon before it encapsulated his entire torso. He appeared to be rooted in place, else he would've moved by now. Gaster's mouth opened and let out an incomprehensible roar, more black goo pooling out. His purple eyes changed to white pinpricks, and a large crack made its way through his skull, forming at his right eye, ending at his left.

Smoke started to billow and lights started to flicker, prompting Robert to get a better view of Gaster's form. As soon as Robert could see, Gaster's white eyes made contact with his. He let off another roar, as tendrils started to develop in the black goo surrounding him. Robert stared back, still ethereal, in minor shock. A sudden light filled the room, before a high pitched whining was heard.

An explosion then rocked the facility, causing more smoke to coalesce. It was a few minutes before ventilation fans started to run, sucking all of the smoke out. The room was a mess, with monitors lying on their side, tables flipped, and glass everywhere. Robert looked to where Gaster was, only noticing a black scorch mark. Sans was lying on his side, unconscious, with a small blue glow radiating from underneath his closed eyes. Yet again, darkness shrouded Robert's eyes, staying like this for 30 seconds.

* * *

When Robert could see again, he was back in the Lab, lacking the transparent form he had before. The chill he had felt earlier came back in full force, prompting Robert to summon a small fire to warm him. It had no effect at expelling the cold, leading Robert to believe that it was magical in nature. Robert turned, deciding that he'd re-explore the Lab when the magical effect dissipated, and was met with a cracked skull.

Gaster stood before him, in all of his malformed glory. The goo surrounding Gaster started to collect together, forming legs. He stared at Robert, his smile widening, before a tendril formed, and started squirting black goo onto the wall behind him. Robert stared on, his fear masked behind his face, as symbols were written out. Gaster maintained eye contact the entire time, before he raised his hands. Gaster began to carve arcane symbols into the air in-front of him, before a hole appeared in the ground behind him. The hole, which was surrounded by more black goo, lead to some kind of void. Gaster slowly shifted into this hole, staring at Robert the entire time with an unwavering smile.

Only when Gaster was completely submerged, did the portal disappear. Robert stood in shock, slowly absorbing what he had seen. Sans was Gaster's lab assistant, and was involved with an accident that resulted in Gaster being riddled with an abundance of DETERMINATION and him being displaced in a different dimension, or something along those lines. Rubbing the bridge of his nose in frustration and confusion, Robert directed his attention to whatever Gaster had written on the wall.

A hand with it's index finger pointing down, another hand pointing left, a sad face, and a flag. It wasn't any language that Robert knew, but it largely resembled the writing he had seen when Sans teleported Robert to his makeshift lab behind his house, when Undyne went on her rampage. Robert took a photo with his Pip-Boy, hoping to gain answers from Sans, before he left the room.

Robert was fed up with what he had seen, so he decided to make his way back to Alphys. Making his way back to the Elevator, Robert went back up to the surface, not noticing the lone buttercup in a flower pot on just outside of metallic doors.

* * *

 **Authors Notes:** Happy Valentine's day everyone! Sorry about being late, here's a longer chapter than usual. A lot of this one was just fluff, and I'm sorry for that. From further on, new chapters should be posted within two weeks or so, no promises. Oh, and if anyone can decipher what Gaster wrote, you'll get a virtual high five from me. Thanks for reading, review if you can!


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